scholarly journals Hospital-based enhanced surveillance for West Nile virus neuroinvasive disease

2016 ◽  
Vol 144 (15) ◽  
pp. 3170-3175 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. P. LINDSEY ◽  
M. FISCHER ◽  
D. NEITZEL ◽  
E. SCHIFFMAN ◽  
M. L. SALAS ◽  
...  

SUMMARYAccurate data on the incidence of West Nile virus (WNV) disease are important for directing public health education and control activities. The objective of this project was to assess the underdiagnosis of WNV neuroinvasive disease through laboratory testing of patients with suspected viral meningitis or encephalitis at selected hospitals serving WNV-endemic regions in three states. Of the 279 patients with cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) specimens tested for WNV immunoglobulin M (IgM) antibodies, 258 (92%) were negative, 19 (7%) were positive, and two (1%) had equivocal results. Overall, 63% (12/19) of patients with WNV IgM-positive CSF had WNV IgM testing ordered by their attending physician. Seven (37%) cases would not have been identified as probable WNV infections without the further testing conducted through this project. These findings indicate that over a third of WNV infections in patients with clinically compatible neurological illness might be undiagnosed due to either lack of testing or inappropriate testing, leading to substantial underestimates of WNV neuroinvasive disease burden. Efforts should be made to educate healthcare providers and laboratorians about the local epidemiology of arboviral diseases and the optimal tests to be used in different clinical situations.

2011 ◽  
Vol 140 (9) ◽  
pp. 1632-1636 ◽  
Author(s):  
I. B. WEBER ◽  
N. P. LINDSEY ◽  
A. M. BUNKO-PATTERSON ◽  
G. BRIGGS ◽  
T. J. WADLEIGH ◽  
...  

SUMMARYAccurate data on West Nile virus (WNV) cases help guide public health education and control activities, and impact regional WNV blood product screening procedures. During an outbreak of WNV disease in Arizona, records from patients with meningitis or encephalitis were reviewed to determine the proportion tested for WNV. Of 60 patients identified with meningitis or encephalitis, 24 (40%) were tested for WNV. Only 12 (28%) of 43 patients aged <50 years were tested for WNV compared to 12 (71%) of 17 patients aged ⩾50 years (P<0·01). Patients with clinical signs of weakness or paralysis, elevated CSF protein, admitted to an inpatient facility, or discharged to a rehabilitation facility were also more likely to have WNV testing performed. The lack of testing in younger age groups and in those with less severe disease probably resulted in substantial underestimates of WNV neuroinvasive disease burden.


Author(s):  
Matthew Finn

West Nile virus (WNV) is a single-stranded RNA virus of the Flavivirus family that is transmitted via a mosquito vector, typically causing fever and capable of causing meningoencephalitis. Although mortality is low, it can lead to debilitating neuroinvasive disease in some patients. WNV is a leading cause of domestically-acquired arboviral disease and most commonly occurs in late August and early September. Consider WNV in otherwise unexplained cases of meningitis or encephalitis. Initial testing should consist of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) analysis and West Nile immunoglobulin M enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in serum and/or CSF. WNV is a nationally notifiable disease. Prevention remains the key to controlling this disease. Reducing the breeding grounds of the Culex mosquito and using insect repellant to prevent bites are two important strategies.


2015 ◽  
Vol 20 (20) ◽  
Author(s):  
A Rizzoli ◽  
M A Jiménez-Clavero ◽  
L Barzon ◽  
P Cordioli ◽  
J Figuerola ◽  
...  

West Nile virus (WNV) is continuously spreading across Europe, and other continents, i.e. North and South America and many other regions of the world. Despite the overall sporadic nature of outbreaks with cases of West Nile neuroinvasive disease (WNND) in Europe, the spillover events have increased and the virus has been introduced into new areas. The high genetic diversity of the virus, with remarkable phenotypic variation, and its endemic circulation in several countries, require an intensification of the integrated and multidisciplinary research efforts built under the 7th Framework Programme of the European Union (FP7). It is important to better clarify several aspects of WNV circulation in Europe, including its ecology, genomic diversity, pathogenicity, transmissibility, diagnosis and control options, under different environmental and socio-economic scenarios. Identifying WNV endemic as well as infection-free areas is becoming a need for the development of human vaccines and therapeutics and the application of blood and organs safety regulations. This review, produced as a joint initiative among European experts and based on analysis of 118 scientific papers published between 2004 and 2014, provides the state of knowledge on WNV and highlights the existing knowledge and research gaps that need to be addressed with high priority in Europe and neighbouring countries.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yanping Zhang ◽  
Wenwen Lei ◽  
Yali Wang ◽  
Haitian Sui ◽  
Bo Liu ◽  
...  

AbstractWest Nile virus (WNV) was first isolated in mainland China from mosquitoes in Jiashi County, Kashgar Region, Xinjiang in 2011, following local outbreaks of viral meningitis and encephalitis caused by WNV. To elaborate the epidemiological characteristics of the WNV, surveillance of WNV infection in Kashgar Region, Xinjiang from 2013 to 2016 were carried out. Blood and CSF samples from surveillance human cases, blood of domestic chicken, cattle, sheep and mosquitoes in Kashgar Region were collected and detected. There were human 65 WNV Immunoglobulin M (IgM) antibody positive cases by ELISA screening, 6 confirmed WNV cases by the plaque reduction neutralization test (PRNT) screening. These cases occurred mainly concentrated in August to September of each year, and most of them were males. WNV-neutralizing antibodies were detected in both chickens and sheep, and the positive rates of neutralizing antibodies were 15.5% and 1.78%, respectively. A total of 15,637 mosquitoes were collected in 2013–2016, with Culex pipiens as the dominant mosquito species. Four and 1 WNV-positive mosquito pools were detected by RT-qPCR in 2013 and 2016 respectively. From these data, we can confirm that Jiashi County may be a natural epidemic foci of WNV disease, the trend highlights the routine virology surveillance in WNV surveillance cases, mosquitoes and avian should be maintained and enhanced to provide to prediction and early warning of outbreak an epidemic of WNV in China.


2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Alyx B Porter ◽  
Akanksha Sharma ◽  
Marie F Grill ◽  
Scott Spritzer ◽  
A Arturo Leis ◽  
...  

Pathogens ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (12) ◽  
pp. 1073
Author(s):  
Juan-Carlos Saiz

West Nile virus (WNV) is a widely distributed enveloped flavivirus transmitted by mosquitoes, which main hosts are birds. The virus sporadically infects equids and humans with serious economic and health consequences, as infected individuals can develop a severe neuroinvasive disease that can even lead to death. Nowadays, no WNV-specific therapy is available and vaccines are only licensed for use in horses but not for humans. While several methodologies for WNV vaccine development have been successfully applied and have contributed to significantly reducing its incidence in horses in the US, none have progressed to phase III clinical trials in humans. This review addresses the status of WNV vaccines for horses, birds, and humans, summarizing and discussing the challenges they face for their clinical advance and their introduction to the market.


2010 ◽  
Vol 68 (5) ◽  
pp. 761-763 ◽  
Author(s):  
Cristiane N Soares ◽  
Mauro J. Cabral Castro ◽  
José M Peralta ◽  
Marcos R.G. de Freitas ◽  
Marzia Puccioni-Sohler

Meningitis and encephalitis are complications of West Nile virus (WNV) infection. Although WNV is endemic in North America, the virus has recently been reported in Colombia and Argentina. Investigation of WNV in Brazil is important since this virus has never been studied previously in this country. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the presence of WNV infection in viral encephalitis/meningitis cases of unknown etiology in the city of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. METHOD: Thirty-seven adults with viral meningitis/encephalitis had their serum and CSF tested for WNV antibodies using the ELISA method. RESULTS: Only one case was WNV-positive, but this case was also positive for dengue. The plaque reduction neutralization test distinguished infections, and was negative for WNV. CONCLUSION: WNV can be confused with dengue infection. Their symptoms and neurological picture are similar. We did not find WNV in any patients with encephalitis and meningitis in the city of Rio de Janeiro. Up to now, it has not been detected in Brazil


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