C. psittacii IgA (IFA)
Sample: Serum
Schedule: Daily (Immunofluorescence)
Units: Titer
Range: A titer of 1:16 or more indicates possible current infection.
Remarks: Psittacosis or ornithosis (parrot fever) is caused by the obligatory organism Chlamydia psittaci (C psittaci). This organism can infect parrots, parakeets, canaries, and other avian species (eg, turkeys, pigeons, ducks). The infection is trnasmited by nonpsittacine birds. The route for infection is the respiratory system after inhaling organisms from dried avian excreta. At the bigining the organism spreads on the blood to the reticuloendothelial system and then the bacteria causes lung infection.
