Leptospirosis is one of the most important zoonotic diseases based on the severity of the clinical course, frequency of fatal outcome and long-term clinical consequences. In Ukraine, leptospirosis is one of the most widespread natural-focal infectious diseases. Based on data of the Public Health Center of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine in 2017, the incidence rate was 0.77 per 100,000 population (330 cases), mortality rate was 0,08 per 100 000 population (case fatality rate was 10,9 %). In Lviv Oblast, the disease was registered as sporadic cases that were not related to each other (in 2017, the incidence rate was 0.72 per 100,000 population. Laboratory testing of samples collected from patients and environmental objects that may be the source of the pathogen is an integral part of the epidemiological surveillance of leptospirosis. Modern laboratory diagnostics of leptospirosis is based on microbiological, immunological and molecular-biological methods used in various combinations. Molecular genetic diagnostic methods that allow detection of the Leptospira spp. RNA/DNA are the most promising for diagnosis of leptospirosis in the early stages of the disease. Investigation of environmental objects allows timely detection of the pathogen in natural foci and conducting a set of anti-epidemic necessary measures.
Objective: To estimate effectiveness of PCR method for epidemiology surveillance for leptospirosis in Lviv Oblast and compare it with microscopic agglutination test (MAT).