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At least 307 records · Page 17Linked to original sources
PubMed2000

Long-term control of Legionella species in potable water after a nosocomial legionellosis outbreak in an intensive care unit.

Environmental and patient-care control measures were initiated in response to an outbreak of legionellosis in an intensive care unit in 1992. The measures included maintaining elevated potable hot-water temperatures following superheating and using sterile water for administrations through nasogastric tubes. Legionella species remained below detectable levels in the potable hot-water system upon reevaluation in 1999. Nosocomial cases of legionellosis have not been reported since the outbreak.

Cross Infection↗
PubMed1990

An outbreak of human Semliki Forest virus infections in Central African Republic.

Semliki Forest (SF) virus was responsible for an outbreak of febrile illnesses in Bangui, Central African Republic (CAR), during October-December 1987. The virus was isolated at first from mosquitoes, mainly Aedes africanus, collected August-October in a gallery forest 100 km from Bangui. During October-December, 22 isolations of SF virus were made from serum samples collected from patients in Bangui presenting with fever, severe persistent headache, myalgia, arthralgia, and a convalescence marked by asthenia. During the same period, 8 SF virus isolates were obtained from mosquitoes collected in Bangui, mainly from Ae. aegypti. Europeans, particularly soldiers who had recently arrived from France, were affected. Antibodies to alphaviruses had been previously detected in a high proportion of resident human populations in CAR. We conclude that SF virus is a human pathogen.

Aedes↗
PubMed1955

Poliomyelitis in 1953.

The incidence of poliomyelitis throughout the world is outlined on the basis of official statistics-in many cases necessarily provisional or approximate-augmented by information from wider and unpublished sources. Available reports on the virus types responsible for poliomyelitis outbreaks in recent years are also summarized.A rise in apparent incidence occurred in the following countries in 1953: Africa-Angola, Egypt (largely due to improved reporting), Middle Congo (French Equatorial Africa), Morocco (French Zone), Ruanda-Urundi, Tanganyika, Tunisia, Union of South Africa, and Upper Volta (French West Africa); America-Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Colombia, El Salvador, Greenland, Mexico, Nicaragua, and Uruguay; Europe-Austria, Finland, France, Greece, Italy, Norway, Republic of Ireland, Saarland, Sweden, Switzerland, Trieste (British/United States Zone), Turkey, United Kingdom, and Yugoslavia. The epidemics in Canada and Sweden were the most severe ever recorded in the two countries. The incidence decreased markedly in: Africa-Kenya, Mauritius, Southern Rhodesia, and Uganda; America-Chile (probably), Cuba, and the USA; Asia-Cambodia, Ceylon, India, Israel, Lebanon, Philippines, and Thailand; Europe-Belgium, Denmark, Federal Republic of Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, and Spain; Oceania-Gilbert and Ellice Islands, Hawaii Islands, and New Zealand.While data on virus types are insufficient for any definitive conclusions to be reached as to responsibility for poliomyelitis outbreaks, it would appear that all three types are widely distributed, while in the selected areas where polioviruses have been typed, type 1 virus has been isolated the most frequently.

Africa↗
PubMed2004

Evaluation of reporting timeliness of public health surveillance systems for infectious diseases.

BACKGROUND: Timeliness is a key performance measure of public health surveillance systems. Timeliness can vary by disease, intended use of the data, and public health system level. Studies were reviewed to describe methods used to evaluate timeliness and the reporting timeliness of National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System (NNDSS) data was evaluated to determine if this system could support timely notification and state response to multistate outbreaks. METHODS: Published papers that quantitatively measured timeliness of infectious disease surveillance systems operating in the U.S. were reviewed. Median reporting timeliness lags were computed for selected nationally notifiable infectious diseases based on a state-assigned week number and various date types. The percentage of cases reported within the estimated incubation periods for each disease was also computed. RESULTS: Few studies have published quantitative measures of reporting timeliness; these studies do not evaluate timeliness in a standard manner. When timeliness of NNDSS data was evaluated, the median national reporting delay, based on date of disease onset, ranged from 12 days for meningococcal disease to 40 days for pertussis. Diseases with the longer incubation periods tended to have a higher percentage of cases reported within its incubation period. For acute hepatitis A virus infection, which had the longest incubation period of the diseases studied, more than 60% of cases were reported within one incubation period for each date type reported. For cryptosporidiosis, Escherichia coli O157:H7 infection, meningococcal disease, salmonellosis, and shigellosis, less than 40% of cases were reported within one incubation period for each reported date type. CONCLUSION: Published evaluations of infectious disease surveillance reporting timeliness are few in number and are not comparable. A more standardized approach for evaluating and describing surveillance system timeliness should be considered; a recommended methodology is presented. Our analysis of NNDSS reporting timeliness indicated that among the conditions evaluated (except for acute hepatitis A infection), the long reporting lag and the variability across states limits the usefulness of NNDSS data and aberration detection analysis of those data for identification of and timely response to multistate outbreaks. Further evaluation of the factors that contribute to NNDSS reporting timeliness is warranted.

Communicable Diseases↗
PubMed2006

Molecular epidemiology of HIV type 1 subtypes in Taiwan: outbreak of HIV type 1 CRF07_BC infection in intravenous drug users.

In Taiwan, sexual transmission is responsible for most HIV-1 infections with two dominant subtypes, subtype B and CRF01_AE, distributing among homosexual and heterosexual groups, respectively. Recently, intravenous drug use has become an emerging route of HIV-1 transmission and contributed to a significant increase of HIV-1 infection. To characterize the HIV isolates responsible for the outbreak among intravenous drug users (IDUs), phylogenetic analysis was performed to analyze the protease/RT sequences amplified from HIV-1-infected IDUs at National Taiwan University Hospital and Taipei City STD Control Center. CRF07_BC, which is circulating in northern China, was demonstrated to account for the majority of HIV-1 infection in IDUs in the past 2 years. Although these Taiwanese CRF07_BC sequences shared the same breakpoint positions as those described in the CRF07_BC reference sequences, they formed a unique cluster in the phylogenetic tree, suggesting they originated from a founder virus. This finding was further supported by the relative low genetic diversity and unique sequence features. Our results demonstrated the emergence of CRF07_BC and its association with the HIV-1 outbreak among IDUs between 2004 and 2005 in Taiwan. This finding not only helps us to have a better understanding of the HIV evolution in Asia, but also has important implications for vaccine design in the future.

Disease Outbreaks↗
PubMed1995

Emergence of nalidixic acid resistant Shigella dysenteriae type 1 in Thailand: an outbreak associated with consumption of a coconut milk dessert.

BACKGROUND: Although Shigella dysenteriae type 1 has been responsible for large outbreaks of severe dysentery in many parts of Asia, relatively few cases of this disease have been reported from Thailand and have generally not involved nalidixic acid resistant strains. METHODS: Beginning March 1991, all patients with diarrhoea seen at the hospital outpatient department (OPD) in Suan Phung, Thailand (a western district near the Burmese border) were cultured for enteric pathogens. Shigella dysenteriae 1 was first recognized in July 1992, and an OPD-based case-control study was conducted to pinpoint the source of the outbreak in the community. For each case of culture confirmed S. dysenteriae 1, one control person without diarrhoea, matched by age and date of visit, was randomly selected from the OPD registry. RESULTS: Of 197 patients treated for diarrhoea at the hospital OPD in July and August 1992, 79 (40%) had bloody diarrhoea, compared with 86/561 (15%) patients seen during 16 months of previous surveillance (P < 0.0001). Shigella dysenteriae 1 was isolated from 33/197 (17%) patients. Compared to matched controls, patients with S. dysenteriae 1 were more likely to attend one of the local elementary schools (odds ratio = 6.74, P = 0.025), or live in the community surrounding this school (odds ratio for non-school age people = 18.0, P = 0.008). A cross-sectional study conducted at the school indicated that 50 (10%) of 485 students had dysentery in July. A coconut milk dessert prepared at the school was identified as the vehicle of transmission (relative risk = 24.9, P < 0.0001). CONCLUSIONS: Nalidixic acid resistant S. dysenteriae 1 emerged in a community in Thailand, and was traced to a point source outbreak at a local school.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1979

Evaluation of a neuraminidase-specific influenza A virus vaccine in children: antibody responses and effects on two successive outbreaks of natural infection.

Three groups of children were immunized with an inactivated Port Chalmers (H3ChN2Ch) influenza vaccine (group A), a neuraminidase-specific (Heq1N2Ch) influenza vaccine (group B), or a placebo. Immunization induced seroconversion for H3Ch and N2Ch-specific antibody in group A and for N2Ch antibody in group B. The protective efficacies observed against naturally acquired illness with the Port Chalmers strain of influneza A virus were 68.7% and 37.4% in groups A and B, respectively, in comparison to the placebo group, and those against illness produced by the subsequent outbreak of the Victoria strain were 80.0% and 72.7%. These data support the role of neuraminidase-specific immunization in protection against influenza. Although the degree of protection after vaccination with the Heq1N2Ch vaccine was less than that provided by the biphasic H3ChN2Ch vaccine against the Port Chalmers strain, it appeared to be similar in the two vaccine study groups against the Victoria strain.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1989

The influence of seasonal temperatures on the natural regulation of the screwworm, Cochliomyia hominivorax, in the southern U.S.A.

The incidence of screwworm cases in Texas during the 1962-82 sterile-male eradication campaign is analysed in relation to seasonal temperatures and screwworm density. The analysis shows that screwworm outbreaks occur in response to favourable seasonal conditions, especially warm winters and cool summers. The outbreaks collapse following cold winters and hot summers. Screwworm density in autumn also influences rates of increase, possibly through a shortage of wounded hosts in the autumn-winter period. The analysis provides a simple predictive model which not only accounts for the fluctuations in case incidence seen in Texas during the eradication campaign, which others have attributed to strain problems and release methods, but also simulates the historical pattern of screwworm abundance in both Texas and Florida over the last 100 years. It is concluded that screwworm, being essentially a tropical species, might well have been eradicated from the southern U.S.A. by exceptionally unfavourable climate such as occurred in Florida in 1958 and in Texas in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Certainly, unfavourable climate must have been important to the success of the eradication campaigns.

Animals↗
PubMed1981

Salmonella and shigella surveillance in Hungary, 1972-1976. II. Shigella surveillance.

Shigellae were isolated from 32 399 persons in the bacteriological laboratories of the Public Health Stations between 1972-1976. The number of isolations ranged between 5325 and 8237 yearly. As S. dysenteriae and S. boydii serotypes occurred only in about 1.5% of all isolations, the epidemiological situation was determined by the incidence of S. flexneri and S. sonnei. Except in 1973, S. sonnei constituted the majority in every year. S. sonnei predominance, observed first in the western regions of the country, showed a gradual eastward spread and became characteristic of all localities in 1975-1976. The July-September peak of shigella isolations was associated with S. sonnei, as S. flexneri was distributed practically evenly in every season. The incidence of shigella isolations per 100 000 inhabitants was the lowest in the middle and the highest in the northern parts of the country. Sporadic cases were somewhat more frequent than epidemic outbreaks. Shigellae were isolated in 64.1% from patients and in 35.9% from asymptomatic excreters. The patient : excreter ratio was higher for S. sonnei (70.2 : 29.8) than for S. flexneri (54.6 : 45.4). In the survey period, 14 692 isolations were made in the course of 3278 epidemics; out of these, 11 171 cases were involved in 574 extensive outbreaks. S. sonnei was responsible mainly for school and nursery outbreaks, whereas S. flexneri dysentery predominated in mental wards and in homes for the aged and for mentally retarded children. The prevalent types of S. flexneri were (serological/phage type): 2a/69, 3a/5, 3a/19, 4a/81, 4a/89d and 6/85. The prevalent epidemiological subunits of S. sonnei were (phage/colicin type): 2/0, 2/6, 2/12, 3/12, 6/0, 7/0, 65/0, 65/6 and 65/12.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

Molecular analysis of Pseudomonas aeruginosa: epidemiological investigation of mastitis outbreaks in Irish dairy herds.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a pathogen in both humans and animals. This bacterium, most often associated with respiratory infections in cystic fibrosis patients, was found to be the causative agent in bovine mastitis outbreaks among 11 Irish dairy herds. Epidemiological findings suggested that the infection was spread to all herds by teat wipes that had been contaminated with this organism. Two molecular-typing strategies were used in an attempt to determine the genomic relationship(s), if any, of the P. aeruginosa strains isolated from the various herds and to verify whether the same strain was responsible for each outbreak. Thirty-six isolates from the mastitis outbreaks were tested and compared to fourteen clinical isolates from Cork University Hospital. With one exception, all outbreak-linked strains produced identical patterns when ribotyped with ClaI and PvuII enzymes. Eight of the clinical isolates gave the same ClaI ribotype pattern as the mastitis-causing strains. However, PvuII proved more discriminatory, with only the outbreak isolates producing identical patterns. Similar results were obtained with RW3A-primed DNA amplification fingerprinting, with all outbreak isolates except one displaying the same fingerprint array. The clinical strains produced several fingerprint patterns, all of which were different from those of the mastitis-causing isolates. Fine-resolution DNA fingerprinting with a fluorescence-labelled RW3A primer also identified a number of low-molecular-weight polymorphisms that would have remained undetected by conventional methods. These data support the view that the same P. aeruginosa strain was responsible for the mastitis outbreaks in all 11 herds.

Animals↗
PubMed1994

Anti-rotavirus G type-specific and isotype-specific antibodies in children with natural rotavirus infections.

Serum VP7 (G) type- and isotype-specific anti-rotavirus antibodies were assessed among children monitored longitudinally over one or two rotavirus seasons in day care centers. Seventy-five pairs of blood specimens from 63 children were tested for anti-rotavirus antibodies. Stool specimens were collected weekly and tested for rotavirus antigen. G typing of detected rotaviruses showed that seven outbreaks of G1 and one of G3 occurred during the two seasons. G type-specific responses to the outbreak strain occurred among 79% of infected children and 9% of children with infection not detected (P < .001). Of children infected with G1, 54% had a heterotypic response; they were older (P = .048) and had higher preexisting G1 antibody levels than children who had only homotypic responses (P = .012). Higher IgA, IgG, and homotypic antibody levels to the antigenic site C of the G1 and G3 VP7s correlated with protection against infection and illness, homotypic antibody independently of IgA or IgG titers.

Antibodies, Viral↗
PubMed2006

Infectious disease outbreaks in competitive sports: a review of the literature.

Recent outbreaks of infectious diseases in athletes in competitive sports have stimulated considerable interest. The environments in which these athletes compete, practice, receive therapy for injuries, and travel, both domestically and internationally, provide varied opportunities for the transmission of infectious organisms. The purpose of this medical literature review is to identify the agents most commonly reported in the medical literature as responsible for infectious disease outbreaks in specific sports and their modes of transmission and to guide targeted prevention efforts. A literature review of English-language articles in medical publications that reported outbreaks of infectious diseases in competitive athletes was conducted in PubMed MEDLINE from 1966 through May 2005. Outbreaks that were solely food borne were excluded. Fifty-nine reports of infectious disease outbreaks in competitive sports were identified in the published medical literature. Herpes simplex virus infections appear to be common among wrestlers and rugby players, with no single strain responsible for the outbreaks. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus was responsible for several recent outbreaks of soft tissue and skin infections among collegiate and professional athletes. The most common mode of transmission in outbreaks was direct, person-to-person (primarily skin-to-skin) contact. Blood-borne exposure was implicated in 2 confirmed outbreaks of hepatitis. Airborne and vector transmissions were rarely reported. This review provides an overview of infectious disease outbreaks thought to be either serious enough or unusual enough to report. Appropriate surveillance of the frequency of infections will allow sports medicine staff to identify outbreaks quickly and take necessary measures to contain further transmission and prevent future outbreaks.

Communicable Diseases↗
PubMed2003

Telehealth responses to bio-terrorism and emerging infections.

Emerging infectious diseases, such as severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), are of huge economic importance. They are difficult to predict. The World Health Organization has a Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network, which was involved at an early stage in the SARS outbreak in 2003. Three major lessons were learned as a result of the SARS epidemic in 2003, involving communication, evidence-based action and global partnerships. It is proposed that a series of broadband global response networks should be developed. At a technical level the networks are essentially in place, such as the Internet2 global network. Suitable peripheral devices also exist. What has not yet been created is the appropriate software to allow the use of these networks, although a number of commercial products are in the process of development.

Bioterrorism↗
PubMed2003

New model developed for outbreak readiness.

On-line template allows facility to plug in real-world numbers. Model developed in part from actual response experiences. Communitywide outbreaks present a unique set of challenges.

Anti-Bacterial Agents↗
PubMed2006

Molecular epidemiology of norovirus in outbreaks of gastroenteritis in southwest Germany from 2001 to 2004.

The identification and molecular epidemiology of norovirus in outbreaks of gastroenteritis were studied during a 3-year period in Germany. Specimens (n = 316) from 159 nonbacterial gastroenteritis outbreaks from March 2001 to June 2004 were analyzed for the presence of noroviruses by reverse transcriptase PCR. Outbreaks were most frequent in elderly people's homes and care centers (43%), followed by hospitals (24%). Molecular analyses of strains from 148 outbreaks showed that there were up to 12 genotypes involved in the outbreaks. Genogroup II noroviruses were responsible for 95% of the outbreaks. Cocirculation of more than one strain in the same outbreak and cocirculation of genogroup I and II strains in the same place were observed. Genogroup II4 (Grimsby-like) was the most prevalent strain, accounting for 48% and 67% of the outbreaks in 2002 and 2003, respectively. The genogroup IIb (Castell/Suria) genotype was observed in all the years of the study. Epidemiological and molecular data indicated that there was a major shift of the predominant strain that coincided with the appearance of a new variant of genogroup II4 in 2002. By the application of reverse transcriptase PCR, this study has demonstrated the importance and dynamism of noroviruses in Germany.

Caliciviridae Infections↗