abstract
- Listeriosis is a major public health concern associated with high hospitalization and mortality rates. The objective of this work was to summarize evidence on the associations between risk factors and sporadic cases by meta-analysing outcomes from currently published case-control studies. Suitable scientific articles were identified through systematic literature search, and subjected to a methodological quality assessment. From each study, odds-ratio (OR) measures as well as study characteristics such as population type, design, type of model and risk factor hierarchy were extracted. Mixed-effects meta-analysis models were adjusted by population type to appropriate data partitions. Twelve primary studies investigating sporadic listeriosis conducted between 1985 and 2013 passed through a quality assessment stage. These studies provided 226 OR considered for meta-analysis. According to the meta-analysis, the main risk factor for acquiring listeriosis is suffering from an immunocompromising disease. In relation to the food exposures, this meta-analysis confirmed known risk factors such as consumption of RTE dairy, seafood and processed meat and underlined new food vehicles as fruits and vegetables, recently involved in outbreaks. There were not enough data to appraise travel, animal-contact and person-to-person as transmission pathways for listeriosis. These results will allow refining the case-control studies in the aim of improving risk factors characterisation for listeriosis in the susceptible population.