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Biomedical subjects

Y J Hutin

Publications and source records attributed to Y J Hutin.

12 recordsLinked to original sources

The role of child care in a community-wide outbreak of hepatitis A.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the role of child care centers in a community-wide hepatitis A epidemic. METHODS: We analyzed surveillance data during an epidemic in Maricopa County, Arizona, from January to October 1997 and conducted a case-control study using a sample of cases reported from June to November. Cases were physician-diagnosed and laboratory confirmed; control subjects were frequency matched by age and neighborhood. Information regarding hepatitis A risk factors, including child care-related exposures, was collected. Characteristics of all licensed child care centers in the county were obtained through review of computerized lists from the Arizona Office of Child Day Care Licensing. Surveillance data were linked to the child care list to determine which centers had reported hepatitis A cases. We conducted univariate and multivariate conditional logistic analyses and calculated population attributable risks (PAR). RESULTS: In total, 1242 cases (50/100 000 population) were reported. The highest rates occurred among people aged 0 to 4 (76/100 000), 5 to 14 (95/100 000), and 15 to 29 (79/100 000) years. The most frequently reported risk factor was contact with a hepatitis A patient (45%). However, nearly 80% of these contacts were with individuals who attended or worked in a child care center. Overall, child care center-related contact could have been the source of infection for 34% of case-patients. In the case-control study, case-patients (n = 116) and control subjects (n = 116) did not differ with respect to demographic characteristics. A total of 51% of case-patients compared with 18% of control subjects reported attending or working in a child care setting (direct contact; adjusted odds ratio [OR]: 6.0; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 2.1-23.0) or being a household contact of such a person (indirect contact; OR: 3.0; 95% CI: 1.3-8.0). In age-stratified analyses, the association between hepatitis A and direct or indirect contact with child care settings was strongest for children <6 years old and adults aged 18 to 34 years. Household contact with a person with hepatitis A also was associated with hepatitis A (OR: 9.2; 95% CI: 2.6-58.2). The presence of a child <5 years old in the household was not associated with hepatitis A. The estimated PAR for direct child care contact was 23% (95% CI: 16-34), for indirect child care contact was 21% (95% CI: 13-35), and for any child care contact was 40% (95% CI: 30-53). Information on 1243 licensed child care centers was obtained, with capacity ranging from 5 to 479 slots (mean: 87). Thirty-four (2.7%) centers reported hepatitis A cases. Centers that had a mean capacity of >50 children were more than twice as likely to have had a reported case of hepatitis A (OR: 2.6; 95% CI: 1.1-6.7). Among the 747 centers that accepted >50 children, having infant (OR: 3.7; 95% CI: 1.6-8.3), toddler (OR: 6.3; 95% CI: 2.2-20.0), or full-day service (OR; undefined; 95% CI: 1.7- ~) was associated with having a reported case of hepatitis A. CONCLUSIONS: In Maricopa County, people associated with child care settings are at increased risk of hepatitis A, and child care attendees may be an appropriate target group for hepatitis A vaccination. Considering the estimated proportion of children who attended child care and were old enough to receive hepatitis A vaccine (>/=2 years of age) and the calculated PAR, approximately 40% of cases might have been prevented if child care center attendees and staff had been vaccinated. However, epidemiologic studies indicate that the proportion of cases that are attributable to child care center exposure varies considerably among counties, suggesting that this exposure may be associated with an increased risk of hepatitis A in some communities but not in others. To prevent and control hepatitis A epidemics in communities, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices and the American Academy of Pediatrics have adopted a long-term strategy of routine vaccination of children who live in areas with consistently elevated hepatitis A rates. After demonstrating cost-effectiveness, a rule was implemented in January 1999 to require hepatitis A vaccination of all children who are aged 2 to 5 years and enrolled in a licensed child care facility in Maricopa County. Other communities with similar epidemiologic features might consider routine vaccination of child care center attendees as a long-term hepatitis A prevention strategy. Consistent with current recommendations, in communities with persistently elevated hepatitis A rates where child care center attendance does not play an important role in hepatitis A virus transmission in the community, child care centers may nonetheless provide a convenient access point for delivering hepatitis A as well as other routine childhood vaccinations.

Adolescent↗

Multiple modes of hepatitis A virus transmission among methamphetamine users.

Methamphetamine users are at increased risk of hepatitis A, but modes of transmission are unclear. The authors conducted a case-control study among methamphetamine users during an outbreak in Iowa in 1997. Twenty-eight reported, laboratory-confirmed, hepatitis A cases did not differ from 18 susceptible controls with respect to age, sex, or number of doses used. When compared with controls in multivariate analysis, case-patients were more likely to have injected methamphetamine (odds ratio (OR) = 5.5, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.1, 27), to have used methamphetamine with another case-patient (OR = 6.2, 95% CI: 0.95, 41), and to have used brown methamphetamine (OR = 5.5, 95% CI: 0.51, 59). Receptive needle sharing was reported by 10 of the 20 case-patients who injected. Methamphetamine use with another case-patient was also associated with hepatitis A in an analysis restricted to noninjectors (OR = 17, 95% CI: 1.0, 630). During this outbreak, hepatitis A may have been transmitted from person to person among methamphetamine users through the fecal-oral and the percutaneous routes. Methamphetamine users should be vaccinated against hepatitis A and should be given immune globulin if they used methamphetamine with a case-patient in the last 2 weeks. Persons who intend to continue using methamphetamine should be advised about safer practices.

Adolescent↗

A multistate, foodborne outbreak of hepatitis A. National Hepatitis A Investigation Team.

BACKGROUND: We investigated a large, foodborne outbreak of hepatitis A that occurred in February and March 1997 in Michigan and then extended the investigation to determine whether it was related to sporadic cases reported in other states among persons who had consumed frozen strawberries, the food suspected of causing the outbreak. METHODS: The cases of hepatitis A were serologically confirmed. Epidemiologic studies were conducted in the two states with sufficient numbers of cases, Michigan and Maine. Hepatitis A virus RNA detected in clinical specimens was sequenced to determine the relatedness of the virus from outbreak-related cases and other cases. RESULTS: A total of 213 cases of hepatitis A were reported from 23 schools in Michigan and 29 cases from 13 schools in Maine, with the median rate of attack ranging from 0.2 to 14 percent. Hepatitis A was associated with the consumption of frozen strawberries in a case-control study (odds ratio for the disease, 8.3; 95 percent confidence interval, 2.1 to 33) and a cohort study (relative risk of infection, 7.5; 95 percent confidence interval, 1.1 to 53) in Michigan and in a case-control study in Maine (odds ratio for infection, 3.4; 95 percent confidence interval, 1.0 to 14). The genetic sequences of viruses from 126 patients in Michigan and Maine were identical to one another and to those from 5 patients in Wisconsin and 7 patients in Arizona, all of whom attended schools where frozen strawberries from the same processor had been served, and to those in 2 patients from Louisiana, both of whom had consumed commercially prepared products containing frozen strawberries from the same processor. CONCLUSIONS: We describe a large outbreak of hepatitis A in Michigan that was associated with the consumption of frozen strawberries. We found apparently sporadic cases in other states that could be linked to the same source by viral genetic analysis.

Adolescent↗

Prevalence of hepatitis B, D and C virus infections among children and pregnant women in Moldova: additional evidence supporting the need for routine hepatitis B vaccination of infants.

Rates of acute hepatitis B are high in Moldova, but the prevalence of chronic infection is unknown. In 1994, we surveyed children and pregnant women, collected demographic information, and drew blood for laboratory testing. Among the 439 children (mean age, 5 years), the prevalence of antibody to hepatitis B core antigen (anti-HBc) and hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) were 17.1 and 6.8%, respectively. Among the 1098 pregnant women (mean age, 26 years), 52.4% were anti-HBc-positive and 9.7% were HBsAg-positive. Of the HBsAg-positive pregnant women, 35.6% were hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg) positive and 18.3% had antibodies to hepatitis D virus. The prevalence of antibody to hepatitis C virus was 1.4% in children and 2.3% in pregnant women. The high HBeAg prevalence among HBsAg-positive pregnant women and the high anti-HBc prevalence among children indicate that both perinatal and early childhood transmission contribute to the high hepatitis B virus endemicity in Moldova.

Adult↗

An outbreak of hospital-acquired hepatitis B virus infection among patients receiving chronic hemodialysis.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate a cluster of hepatitis B virus (HBV) infections between December 1995 and May 1996 among chronic hemodialysis patients in one county. SETTING: Two dialysis centers (A and B) and a hospital (C) in one county. PATIENTS: Six case-patients who were dialyzed in one of two centers, A and B, and had all been hospitalized between January and February 1996 at hospital C. METHODS: Patient 1, usually dialyzed in center A, sero-converted to hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) in December 1995 and could have been the source of infection for the others, who seroconverted between March and April 1996. Two cohort studies were conducted: one among patients dialyzed in center A, to determine where transmission had occurred, and one among patients dialyzed at hospital C at the time patient 1 was hospitalized, to identify factors associated with infection. RESULTS: Four (15%) of the 26 susceptible patients dialyzed at center A became infected with HBV. Hospitalization at hospital C when patient 1 was hospitalized was associated with infection (P = .002). A cohort study of the 10 susceptible patients dialyzed at hospital C during the time patient 1 was hospitalized did not identify specific risk factors for infection. However, supplies and multidose vials were shared routinely among patients, providing opportunities for transmission. CONCLUSION: When chronic hemodialysis patients require dialysis while hospitalized, their HBsAg status should be reviewed, and no instrument, supplies, or medications should be shared among them.

Cohort Studies↗

Injections given in healthcare settings as a major source of acute hepatitis B in Moldova.

BACKGROUND: Reported rates of acute hepatitis B are high in many former Soviet Union republics and modes of transmission are not well defined. METHODS: Two case-control studies were undertaken in Moldova to identify risk factors for acute hepatitis B in people aged 2-15 years (children) and > or =15 years (adults). Serologically confirmed acute hepatitis B cases occurring between 1 January 1994 and 30 August 30 1995, were matched on age, sex, and district of residence to three potential controls who were tested for hepatitis B markers to exclude the immune. Stratified odds ratios (SOR) were calculated using bivariate and multivariate methods. RESULTS: In multivariate analysis, compared with the 175 controls, the 70 adult cases (mean age 25 years, 66% male) were more likely to report receiving injections in the 6 months before illness during a dental visit (SOR = 21; 95% CI: 3.7-120), a hospital visit (SOR = 35; 95% CI: 7.2-170), or a visit to the polyclinic (SOR = 13; 95% CI: 2.4-74). Among children, receiving injections during a hospital visit (SOR = 5.2; 95% CI: 1.2-23) was the only exposure reported significantly more often by the 19 cases (mean age 8 years, 68% male) compared with the 81 controls. CONCLUSION: These results, along with reported unsafe injection practices in Moldova, suggest that injections are a major source of hepatitis B virus transmission and highlight the importance of proper infection-control procedures in preventing transmission of blood-borne infections.

Acute Disease↗

Identifying target groups for a potential vaccination program during a hepatitis A communitywide outbreak.

OBJECTIVES: This study sought to identify groups for targeted vaccination during a communitywide hepatitis A outbreak in 1996. METHODS: Residents of the Sioux City, Iowa, metropolitan area reported with hepatitis A between September 1995 and August 1996 were sampled and compared with population-based controls. RESULTS: In comparison with 51 controls, the 40 case patients were more likely to inject methamphetamine, to attend emergency rooms more often than other health care facilities, and to have a family member who used the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children. CONCLUSIONS: Groups at increased risk of hepatitis A can be identified that might be [corrected] accessed for vaccination during communitywide outbreaks.

Adult↗

Risk factors for intestinal microsporidiosis in patients with human immunodeficiency virus infection: a case-control study.

A prospective unmatched case-control study was conducted to determine risk factors for intestinal microsporidiosis in persons infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) who had < or = 200 CD4 cells/mm3. In multivariate analysis, case-patients (n = 30) were more likely than were control-subjects (n = 56) to have < or = 100 CD4 cells/mm3 (odds ratio [OR], 6.5; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1-42), to report male homosexual preference (OR, 7.6; 95% CI, 1-59.5), and to report swimming in a pool in the previous 12 months (OR, 9.2; 95% CI, 2.1-38.9). In summary, intestinal microsporidiosis in persons with HIV infection and < or = 200/mm3 CD4 cells is associated with male homosexuality and swimming in pools, suggesting fecal-oral transmission, including sexual and waterborne routes.

AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections↗

[Morbidity and mortality related to obstetrical referral patients to the hospital of Bobo-Dioulasso, Burkina Faso].

The obstetrical referral patients admitted to the Sanon Souro hospital in Bobo-Dioulasso (Burkina Faso) during 1991 were retrospectively reviewed. During the study period 741 women were admitted. The median distance between the referring centre and Bobo-Dioulasso was 33 km. Median age was 22 years and median parity was 3. Indications for referral were dominated by obstructed labour, haemorrhages and infections. The proportion of maternal mortality in the study was 5.4% and was not related to maternal age or parity. However, there was a linear trend of increasing mortality according to the distance between the referring centre and Bobo-Dioulasso (X2 for trend: 7.56; p = 0.006). The perinatal mortality rate of 420 p. thousand was not related to maternal age, but a parity exceeding 4 was a risk factor for the occurrence of perinatal death (relative risk: 1.4; 95% C.I.: 1.2-1.7). As for maternal mortality, there was a linear increase of perinatal mortality with the distance from the referring centre (X2: 20.8; p = 0.00001). There was no marked seasonal variation in the number of referrals nor in the mortality rates per month.

Adult↗

[Trachoma in the Sabou area (Burkina Faso). An epidemiological investigation].

Little is known about the epidemiology of trachoma in the Mossi plateau of Burkina Faso and the recent drought could have modified the transmission of the disease. A study population of 82,187 was surveyed using a cluster sample technique. A total of 1,841 people in 108 compounds were included in 18 villages. Data concerning trachoma were collected during six weeks of fieldwork in July 1991, during which local health workers were trained in trachoma and primary health care in ophthalmology. Active trachoma prevalence rises in infancy to reach a peak of about 13% (95% CI 3-23) in the 2 to 5 years old age groups, and then falls to less than 2% prevalence in 30 to 49 age group. Trachoma scarring is almost non-existent and trichiasis was not seen. Active disease was significantly more prevalent in female (prevalence ratio = 1.97, 95% CI: 1.34-2.90) and this difference was present from the age of 3 years. Active trachoma above the age of 30 was more likely to be intense than follicular (p < 0.001, Fisher's exact test). Because of a low prevalence of active disease and because trichiasis is absent, trachoma is not a major health problem in the Sabou area, Burkina Faso. Girls are more affected by active disease than boys and inflammatory trachoma in adults are usually intense in this setting.

Adolescent↗

Outbreak of human monkeypox, Democratic Republic of Congo, 1996 to 1997.

Human monkeypox is a zoonotic smallpox-like disease caused by an orthopoxvirus of interhuman transmissibility too low to sustain spread in susceptible populations. In February 1997, 88 cases of febrile pustular rash were identified for the previous 12 months in 12 villages of the Katako-Kombe Health Zone, Democratic Republic of Congo (attack rate = 22 per 1,000; case-fatality rate = 3.7%). Seven were active cases confirmed by virus isolation. Orthopoxvirus- neutralizing antibodies were detected in 54% of 72 patients who provided serum and 25% of 59 wild-caught animals, mainly squirrels. Hemagglutination-inhibition assays and Western blotting detected antibodies in 68% and 73% of patients, respectively. Vaccinia vaccination, which protects against monkeypox, ceased by 1983 after global smallpox eradication, leading to an increase in the proportion of susceptible people.

Adolescent↗