Dengue fever, Hawaii, 2001-2002

Autochthonous dengue infections were last reported in Hawaii in 1944. In September 2001, the Hawaii Department of Health was notified of an unusual febrile illness in a resident with no travel history; dengue fever was confirmed. During the investigation, 1,644 persons with locally acquired denguelike illness were evaluated, and 122 (7%) laboratory-positive dengue infections were identified; dengue virus serotype 1 was isolated from 15 patients. No cases of dengue hemorrhagic fever or shock syndrome were reported. In 3 instances autochthonous infections were linked to a person who reported denguelike illness after travel to French Polynesia. Phylogenetic analyses showed the Hawaiian isolates were closely associated with contemporaneous isolates from Tahiti. Aedes albopictus was present in all communities surveyed on Oahu, Maui, Molokai, and Kauai; no Ae. aegypti were found. This outbreak underscores the importance of maintaining surveillance and control of potential disease vectors even in the absence of an imminent disease threat.     

Invited commentary: Dengue lessons from Cuba

An 18-year interval between a dengue virus type 1 outbreak in 1977-1979 and a dengue virus type 2 outbreak in 1997 in Santiago de Cuba, Cuba, provided a unique opportunity to evaluate risk factors for dengue disease. All patients with symptomatic dengue, including 205 cases of dengue hemorrhagic fever and 12 deaths, were adults born before the dengue virus type 1 epidemic, and nearly all (98%) experienced secondary dengue virus infections. In contrast, almost all of those who seroconverted without illness (97%) experienced primary dengue virus infection. This provides epidemiologic support for the immune enhancement theory of dengue pathogenesis. The Cuban experience suggests that immune enhancement can be seen even 20 years after the primary dengue virus infection. It also supports the contention that primary infections with dengue virus type 2 (and dengue virus type 4) are largely subclinical. These observations have implications for dengue vaccine development based on live-attenuated viruses.     

Risk factors for infection during a dengue-1 outbreak in Maui, Hawaii, 2001

Autochthonous dengue virus transmission, last identified in the state of Hawaii in 1945, was detected again in 2001. A seroepidemiological survey in a high-incidence community (Nahiku) and a nearby low-incidence community (Hana Subdivision) was implemented. The two communities studied differed in median household size (two vs. four persons), median lot size (2.8 vs. 0.8acres), proportion of households with mosquito larvae (81 vs. 28%) and incidence of recent infection (39% [28/72] vs. 1% [1/131]). The average number of reported anti-mosquito actions by residents of both locations remained low, and approximately 50% (42/80) of the inspected houses had larvae, evidencing the need for more effective community mosquito control. Logistic regression analysis of risk factors for infection in Nahiku identified residing in properties with birds in the house or yard as significantly associated with infection (odds ratio 7.0, 95% CI 1.7-28.5), probably as an indicator of unspecified environmental characteristics that were attractive to the vector. We documented that nearly 40% of Nahiku residents had acquired dengue locally in 2001 and that undetected dengue outbreaks had occurred in Hawaii. Our data suggest that ecological characteristics may help Hawaii health officials identify communities at increased risk of dengue infection.     

The predisposing and protective factors against dengue virus transmission by mosquito vector.

An outbreak of dengue fever occurred in Taiwan between 1987 and 1988. The highest attack rate among adults was estimated at 5.6% in the city of Kao-hsiung. A case-control study was carried out to determine the risks of contracting dengue infection and to identify protective factors against the infection. One hundred dengue patients of the authors' hospital who were diagnosed by virologic or serologic tests constituted the case group. Each dengue patient was matched to a control patient of the same age and sex who had been diagnosed as suffering from a non-vector-borne disease on the same day as the dengue patient. Of the household protective measures against dengue infection prior to the occurrence of illness, the adjusted odds ratio, estimated by stratified analysis, was lower for people who lived in screened houses (odds ratio = 0.58, 95% confidence interval 0.36-0.92) as compared with inhabitants of unscreened houses. The odds ratio was as low as 0.18 (95% confidence interval 0.06-0.56) for people whose homes were fully screened with door screens opening outwardly. Patients who lived near markets and/or open sewers or ditches were running a risk of dengue infection 1.8 (95% confidence interval 1.3-2.4) times higher than those who lived elsewhere. To control dengue outbreaks, the authors recommend that special attention should be devoted to the reduction of outdoor vector sources. Full screening, especially outwardly opening screen doors, seems to be an individual's best protection against dengue fever.     

浙江省温州市两种输人性虫媒传染病监测分析

目的了解温州市登革热和疟疾等输入性虫媒传染病发病情况,为输入性传染病防控提供科学依据。方法对2004--2012年登革热和疟疾疫情进行流行病学分析,收集和分析登革热及疟疾监测资料。结果温州市累计报告输入性登革热病例11例,其中男性4例,女性7例。以孟加拉国和新加坡输入为主（8／11）;发病以6—11月为主,占81．82％。2010-2012年布雷图指数分别为14．65、18．43和16．98,6月布雷图指数最高。2004-2012年累计报告疟疾病例322例,其中间日疟242例,恶性疟71例,混合感染9例。疟疾病例中315例为输入性病例,其中境外输入占34．29％,境内输入占65．71％。血检“三热”患者157500例,感染率为0．20％。结论温州市存在登革热和疟疾输入风险及引起本地暴发的危险因素,应加强监测,采取针对性的防控措施,防止登革热和疟疾等输入性传染病暴发流行。     

Lessons learned during dengue outbreaks in the United States, 2001-2011

Since 2001, three autochthonous dengue fever outbreaks have occurred in the United States: in Hawaii (2001); Brownsville, Texas (2005); and southern Florida (2009-2011). We sought to characterize and describe the response to these outbreaks from the perspectives of public health and vector control officials. By conducting a medical literature review through PubMed and news media searches through Google, we identified persons involved in managing each outbreak; 26 persons then participated in qualitative, semistructured interviews. After analyzing the 3 outbreaks, we found the following prominent themes in the response efforts: timely detection of illness; communication of up-to-date, correct information; and development of a rapid response that engages the community. We therefore recommend that public health authorities involve the clinical and laboratory community promptly, provide accurate information, and engage the local community in vector control and case identification and reporting.     

Epidemiological features of a newly described serotype of Shigella boydii

We report the clinical, microbiological, and epidemiological features of an emerging serotype, Shigella boydii 20. We interviewed patients about symptoms, and history of travel and visitors during the week before illness onset. Seventy-five per cent of the 56 patients were Hispanic. During the week before illness onset, 18 (32%) travelled abroad; 17 (94%) had visited Mexico. Eight (21%) out of 38 who had not travelled had foreign visitors. There were eight closely related patterns by PFGE with XbaI. S. boydii 20 may be related to travel to Mexico and Hispanic ethnicity. Prompt epidemiological investigation of clusters of S. boydii 20 infection may help identify specific vehicles and risk factors for infection.     

Outbreak of Chlamydia pneumoniae infection in a Japanese nursing home, 1999-2000.

OBJECTIVE: To identify risk factors for infection and severe illness due to Chlamydia pneumoniae. METHODS: To identify risk factors for infection, we conducted a case-control study among nursing home residents who had onset of symptoms during December 1, 1999, to February 20, 2000. To identify risk factors for severe illness among nursing home residents, we conducted a retrospective cohort study. SETTING: A nursing home providing long-term and day care services for elderly patients in Japan.Participants. Fifty-nine residents and 41 staff members of a nursing home. RESULTS: The attack rates for respiratory illness were 53% (31 of 59) among residents and 22% (9 of 41) among staff. Infection was confirmed in 15 resident and 2 staff case patients by isolation of C. pneumoniae from nasal swab specimens. Fifteen resident case patients developed severe illness (ie, bronchitis, pneumonia, and hypoxia); one case patient died. The median age of resident case patients was 87 years. We could identify neither the source of the outbreak nor significant risk factors for infection and severe illness in residents. However, residents with a higher level of physical activity were more likely to become infected, whereas older residents (aged more than 85 years) and those with a lower level of physical activity were more likely to develop severe illness (P>.05). Contact with residents was a risk factor for infection in staff (relative risk, undefined; P=.04). CONCLUSIONS: C. pneumoniae can cause large outbreaks of infection and severe illness among elderly persons, and its transmission is likely to be enhanced by close contacts among people in nursing homes. Therefore, early detection of an outbreak by means of better surveillance, and subsequent isolation of patients, may be effective control measures.     

Q fever outbreak in industrial setting

An outbreak of Q fever occurred in South Wales, United Kingdom, from July 15 through September 30, 2002. To investigate the outbreak a cohort and nested case-control study of persons who had worked at a cardboard manufacturing plant was conducted. The cohort included 282 employees and subcontractors, of whom 253 (90%) provided blood samples and 214 (76%) completed questionnaires. Ninety-five cases of acute Q fever were identified. The epidemic curve and other data suggested an outbreak source likely occurred August 5-9, 2002. Employees in the factory's offices were at greatest risk for infection (odds ratio 3.46; 95% confidence interval 1.38-9.06). The offices were undergoing renovation work around the time of likely exposure and contained straw board that had repeatedly been drilled. The outbreak may have been caused by aerosolization of Coxiella burnetii spore-like forms during drilling into contaminated straw board.     

Estimating the Force of Infection for Dengue Virus Using Repeated Serosurveys,Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso

Because of limited data on dengue virus in Burkina Faso, we conducted 4 consecutive age-stratified longitudinal serologic surveys, ≈6 months apart, among persons 1–55 years of age, during June 2015–March 2017, which included a 2016 outbreak. The seroconversion rate before the serosurvey enrollment was estimated by binomial regression, taking age as the duration of exposure, and assuming constant force of infection (FOI) over age and calendar time. We calculated FOI between consecutive surveys and rate ratios for potentially associated characteristics based on seroconversion using the duration of intervals. Among 2,897 persons at enrollment, 66.3% were IgG-positive, and estimated annual FOI was 5.95%. Of 1,269 enrollees participating in all 4 serosurveys, 438 were IgG-negative at enrollment. The annualized FOI ranged from 10% to 20% (during the 2016 outbreak). Overall, we observed high FOI for dengue. These results could support decision-making about control and preventive measures for dengue.     

云南省瑞丽市2013年登革热暴发的流行病学分析

目的分析云南省瑞丽市2013年登革热暴发疫情的流行病学特征,为登革热控制提供依据。方法对所有登革热病例进行流行病学个案调查,采用登革热病毒NS1抗原法检测病例血清标本,采用布雷图指数法进行蚊媒密度监测。结果本次疫情流行历时104 d,共确诊病例232例,其中本地感染145例,缅甸输入87例。流行季节为8-11月,病例主要集中在瑞丽市城区（124/232,53.45%）;男女性别比为1.23∶1,发病年龄最小1岁,最大80岁,以20~49岁年龄组为主;职业分布以商业服务、农民和家务及待业者居多。结论此次疫情为瑞丽市首次发生登革热本地流行;采取伊蚊综合控制措施,布雷图指数≤5.0,疫情可得到有效控制。     

湖南省2018年登革热本地暴发流行病学和病毒分子特征分析

目的 对湖南省2018年登革热本地暴发疫情进行流行病学及病原学特征研究。方法 对报告的8例疑似登革热病例进行实验室诊断,对病例密切接触者搜索出的186例疑似登革热病例和发热病例开展病原学监测,应用C6/36细胞对病例急性期血清开展病毒分离,对15株登革病毒株E基因测序,分析病毒的血清型别和基因亚型,构建系统发生树,分析可能的传播来源。在疫点开展蚊媒密度应急监测和健康人群回顾性血清流行病学调查。结果 8例疑似病例血清标本,6例登革病毒核酸阳性,4例登革病毒NS1抗原阳性。186例疑似登革热病例,96例病原学检测结果阳性,分离到登革病毒株64株,经鉴定全部为登革病毒2型全球型,来源于广东和浙江省的可能性较大。应急蚊媒密度监测,疫点布雷图指数最高达65,具有极高的登革热传播风险。回顾性调查377名健康人群进行登革热抗体水平监测,IgG抗体阳性率为0.53%（2/377）。结论 现场流行病学调查和分子遗传分析提示,湖南省2018年本地暴发疫情由输入性病例引起,由单一的登革病毒2型全球型引起。     

International foodborne outbreak of Shigella sonnei infection in airline passengers

During 22-24 August 2004, an outbreak of Shigella sonnei infection affected air travellers who departed from Hawaii. Forty-seven passengers with culture-confirmed shigellosis and 116 probable cases who travelled on 12 flights dispersed to Japan, Australia, 22 US states, and American Samoa. All flights were served by one caterer. Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis of all 29 S. sonnei isolates yielded patterns that matched within one band. Food histories and menu reviews identified raw carrot served onboard as the likely vehicle of infection. Attack rates for diarrhoea on three surveyed flights with confirmed cases were 54% (110/204), 32% (20/63), and 12% (8/67). A total of 2700 meals were served on flights with confirmed cases; using attack rates observed on surveyed flights, we estimated that 300-1500 passengers were infected. This outbreak illustrates the risk of rapid, global spread of illness from a point-source at a major airline hub.     

The risk of acquiring hepatitis from sewage-contaminated water

There is little information on the risk of acquiring hepatitis A from drinking sewage-contaminated water. In a large outbreak of gastrointestinal illness at Crater Lake National Park, Oregon, a US national park, in June-July, 1975, approximately 100,000 persons were exposed to sewage-contaminated water. State health departments reported three cases of Crater Lake-associated hepatitis A for a rate of 12/100,000 per year, comparable to the reported US incidence of non-B hepatitis 10/100,000 per year. Questionnaire survey of 3997 overnight park visitors revealed five cases of hepatitis A, occurring in 2206 persons who drank water but did not receive immune serum globulin (ISG) within two weeks of exposure, an attack rate of 0.23%. The association between drinking park water and subsequently developing hepatitis was not statistically significant. No cases of hepatitis occurred in 320 park staff and family members, repeatedly exposed to contaminated water. The authors do not recommend routine use of prophylactic ISG for similar outbreaks of gastroenteritis caused by sewage-contaminated water but suggest close surveillance of the exposed group, and careful consideration of risk factors and costs.     

Norwalk-related viral gastroenteritis due to contaminated drinking water

An explosive outbreak of gastrointestinal illness clinically compatible with infection by an agent serologically related to Norwalk virus agent occurred in an elementary school in May 1978. Seroconversion by radioimmunoassay to the Norwalk antigen was noted in two of three ill persons, but no viral particles were identified in stool. Illness developed in 72% of students and teachers at the school, and 32% of household contacts of these ill persons. Of household contacts of persons exposed at school but not clinically ill, 11% developed illness. This value, however, was not statistically different from the level of illness observed concurrently in household contacts of students at an unaffected school nearby. Epidemiologic investigation implicated water as the mode of transmission. Average consumption of one or more glasses per day was strongly associated with illness (p less than 0.00000001). Among soccer team members with limited school contact, water consumption at the school was associated with a 14-fold greater risk of illness (p less than 0.000001). Drinking water was most likely contaminated by back-siphonage through a cross-connection between the school's well and septic tank. This contamination occurred approximately 24 to 36 hours before the outbreak developed.     

Epidemiologic investigations of dengue infection in Mexico, 1980

A binational investigation was conducted in two Mexican cities in 1980 to study epidemiologic characteristics of dengue. Two study areas were selected in each of the cities (Merida and Tampico); in each area, in February and in September, sanitarians recorded information concerning abundance of Aedes aegypti, and public health nurses obtained blood specimens and clinical information from residents. Ninety-nine individuals (24% of the study population) showed serologic evidence of recent dengue 1 infection by hemagglutination inhibition or complement fixation. Infection rates in the four study areas (9%-51%) increased with age in three of the four areas and were higher in females in all four areas. These differences in rates may be related to exposure to infectious mosquitoes in the home; A. aegypti feed most actively during daylight hours, and both females (p less than 0.001) and older individuals (p less than 0.001) were more likely than males or younger persons to be in the home when the study was conducted. A positive correlation was found between infection rates and the container index (number of potential A. aegypti breeding sites per premise--Pearson correlation coefficient 0.95, p = 0.05), suggesting that this index may be a useful predictor of neighborhoods at high risk of dengue transmission. Pending additional studies, public cleanup campaigns should be targeted to neighborhoods in which container indices are highest when an outbreak of dengue is likely to occur.     

数学模型在输入型登革热暴发综合防治中的应用

目的通过参考Newton登革热传播模型及SIR仓室模型,建立登革热数学模型,以深入研究输入型登革热的流行规律和评价不同防治措施的效果。方法建立当时实际相吻合的登革热传播模型,模拟描述2004年浙江省慈溪市逍林镇登革热暴发流行,同时结合当时实际研究登革热流行情况。结果根据模型可得出总的人均蚊媒密度阈值为2.4只,登革热人群免疫抗体水平〉67.8%时,才有可能在登革热病原体输入后不发生登革热的流行暴发。结论数学模型模拟结果与现场调查比较接近,特别是暴发的中后期相对较为吻合,在实际的现场流行病控制中数学模型的应用将为疫情的控制提供必要的帮助和参考意见。     

Cryptosporidiosis in Wisconsin: a case-control study of post-outbreak transmission.

During March-April 1993, an estimated 403000 residents of the 5-county greater Milwaukee, Wisconsin area developed cryptosporidiosis after drinking contaminated municipal water. Although the number of cases dropped precipitously after the implicated water plant closed on 9 April, cases continued to occur. To investigate risk factors for post-outbreak cryptosporidiosis, 33 Milwaukee-area residents who had laboratory-confirmed Cryptosporidium infection with onset of diarrhoea between 1 May and 27 June 1993 were interviewed by telephone. Of these, 28 (85%) had onset of diarrhoea during May, 12 (36%) had watery diarrhoea during the outbreak, and 5(15%) were HIV-infected. In a neighbourhood-matched case-control study, immunosuppression (matched odds ratio (MOR) not calculable, 95% confidence interval (CI) 3.0, infinity) and having a child less than 5 years old in the household (MOR = 17.0, CI 2.0, 395.0) were independently associated with infection. When persons who had diarrhoea during the outbreak were excluded, immunosuppression remained significantly associated with illness (MOR not calculable, CI 1.6, infinity). Cryptosporidium transmission continued after this massive waterborne outbreak but decreased rapidly within 2 months.     

Epidemic dengue transmission in southern Sumatra, Indonesia

An outbreak of dengue fever (DF), dengue haemorrhagic fever (DHF), and dengue shock syndrome (DSS) in the city of Palembang, south Sumatra, Indonesia was investigated to (i) validate epidemic occurrence, (ii) confirm dengue virus aetiology and associated serotype(s), (iii) provide a demonstrable measure of community impact, and (iv) identify causative relationship (if any) with climatic El Ni?o Southern Oscillation (ENSO) influences. Trend analysis based on a 6-year retrospective review of hospital records demonstrates a 3-fold increase in clinical cases for the outbreak period (January-April 1998), relative to historical records. In the 2 hospitals surveyed, the monthly mean number of outbreak-related dengue cases over 4 months was 833 (range 650-995 cases/month); the mean monthly value for the previous 72 months was 107 (range 14-779 cases/month). An apparent trend in epidemic transmission was observed, evolving from a 5-year cyclic phenomenon to an annual occurrence, often indistinguishable from one year to the next. The proportional distribution of clinical outbreak cases into DF, DHF and DSS diagnostic categories was 24%, 66%, and 10%, respectively. The population aged 10-19 years accounted for the largest (35%) proportion of hospitalized DHF cases, followed by children aged 5-9 years (25%) and children aged 4 years (16%). Serum samples obtained during acute illness from 221 hospitalized patients were examined using serology, RT-PCR, and virus isolation in cell culture: 59% of samples had laboratory evidence of a dengue infection. All 4 dengue virus serotypes (DEN 1-4) were identified in epidemic circulation, with DEN 3 predominating (43%). DEN 1 was the principal serotype associated with less severe dengue illness, suggesting that virulence may be, in part, a function of infecting serotype. The climatic influence of ENSO on rainfall and temperature in the months leading up to and during the outbreak was dramatic, and is likely to contribute to favourable outbreak conditions.