Yang De Marinis, Torgny Sunnerhagen, Pradeep Bompada, Anna Bläckberg, Runtao Yang, Joel Svensson, Ola Ekström, Karl-Fredrik Eriksson, Ola Hansson, Leif Groop, Isabel Gonçalves, Magnus Rasmussen
{"title":"Serology assessment of antibody response to SARS-CoV-2 in patients with COVID-19 by rapid IgM/IgG antibody test.","authors":"Yang De Marinis, Torgny Sunnerhagen, Pradeep Bompada, Anna Bläckberg, Runtao Yang, Joel Svensson, Ola Ekström, Karl-Fredrik Eriksson, Ola Hansson, Leif Groop, Isabel Gonçalves, Magnus Rasmussen","doi":"10.1080/20008686.2020.1821513","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/20008686.2020.1821513","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has created a global health- and economic crisis. Detection of antibodies to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) which causes COVID-19 by serological methods is important to diagnose a current or resolved infection. In this study, we applied a rapid COVID-19 IgM/IgG antibody test and performed serology assessment of antibody response to SARS-CoV-2. In PCR-confirmed COVID-19 patients (n = 45), the total antibody detection rate is 92% in hospitalized patients and 79% in non-hospitalized patients. The total IgM and IgG detection is 63% in patients with <2 weeks from disease onset; 85% in non-hospitalized patients with >2 weeks disease duration; and 91% in hospitalized patients with >2 weeks disease duration. We also compared different blood sample types and suggest a higher sensitivity by serum/plasma over whole blood. Test specificity was determined to be 97% on 69 sera/plasma samples collected between 2016-2018. Our study provides a comprehensive validation of the rapid COVID-19 IgM/IgG serology test, and mapped antibody detection patterns in association with disease progress and hospitalization. Our results support that the rapid COVID-19 IgM/IgG test may be applied to assess the COVID-19 status both at the individual and at a population level.</p>","PeriodicalId":37446,"journal":{"name":"Infection Ecology and Epidemiology","volume":"10 1","pages":"1821513"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-09-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/20008686.2020.1821513","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"38589167","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
A J Jääskeläinen, L Kareinen, T Smura, H Kallio-Kokko, O Vapalahti
{"title":"Chikungunya virus infections in Finnish travellers 2009-2019.","authors":"A J Jääskeläinen, L Kareinen, T Smura, H Kallio-Kokko, O Vapalahti","doi":"10.1080/20008686.2020.1798096","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/20008686.2020.1798096","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The mosquito-borne chikungunya virus (CHIKV) causes an acute febrile illness with rash, joint and muscle pain.A realtime RT-PCR assay for CHIKV detecting non-structural protein (nsP2; CHIKV nsP2-RT-qPCR) was set up. All the serodiagnosed CHIKV cases detected during 2009-2019 in Finland were screened with the assay, followed by isolations attempts and sequencing using Sanger and next generation sequencing (NGS). To validate the assay external and in-house quality control samples were used and all were correctly identified. Specificity of the assay was 100%. Assay was sensitive to detect CHIKV RNA in dilution of 10<sup>-8</sup>.During years 2009-2019 34 patients were diagnosed for acute CHIKV infection. Twelve out of 34 cases were positive by CHIKV nsP2-RT-qPCR.Two CHIKV isolations succeeded from two individuals infected originally in Thailand, 2019. From 12 CHIKV nsP2-RT-qPCR positive samples, five (42%) CHIKVs were successfully sequenced. In this study, CHIKVs from year 2019 clustered with CHIKV ECSA-lineage forming sub-cluster with strains from ones detected in Bangladesh 2017, and the ones from Jamaica (2014) within Asian lineage showing highest similarity to strains detected in Caribbean outbreak 2013-15. Majority of the CHIKV infections detected in Finland originates from Asia and virus lineages reflect the global circulation of the pathogen.</p>","PeriodicalId":37446,"journal":{"name":"Infection Ecology and Epidemiology","volume":"10 1","pages":"1798096"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-08-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/20008686.2020.1798096","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"38489508","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The COVID-19 pandemic: critical issues and perspectives for infectious disease prevention in Africa.","authors":"Ayodele Oluwaeun Ajayi","doi":"10.1080/20008686.2020.1798073","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/20008686.2020.1798073","url":null,"abstract":"The current COVID-19 caused by the SARS-CoV-2 is presently rattling global public health with huge numbers of fatalities and vast geographical spread, compared with other recent pandemics like the ...","PeriodicalId":37446,"journal":{"name":"Infection Ecology and Epidemiology","volume":"10 1","pages":"1798073"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-07-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/20008686.2020.1798073","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"38489507","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Mohammad M Hassan, Mohamed E El Zowalaty, Shahneaz A Khan, Ariful Islam, Md Raihan K Nayem, Josef D Järhult
{"title":"Role of Environmental Temperature on the Attack rate and Case fatality rate of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Pandemic.","authors":"Mohammad M Hassan, Mohamed E El Zowalaty, Shahneaz A Khan, Ariful Islam, Md Raihan K Nayem, Josef D Järhult","doi":"10.1080/20008686.2020.1792620","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/20008686.2020.1792620","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>SARS-CoV-2 is a zoonotic <i>Betacoronavirus </i>causing the devastating COVID-19 pandemic. More than twelve million COVID-19 cases and 500 thousand fatalities have been reported in 216 countries. Although SARS-CoV-2 originated in China, comparatively fewer people have been affected in other Asian countries than in Europe and the USA. This study examined the hypothesis that lower temperature may increase the spread of SARS-CoV-2 by comparing attack rate and case fatality rate (until 21 March 2020) to mean temperature in January-February 2020. The attack rate was highest in Luxembourg followed by Italy and Switzerland. There was a significant (p = 0.02) correlation between decreased attack rate and increased environmental temperature. The case fatality rate was highest in Italy followed by Iran and Spain. There was no significant correlation between the case fatality rate and temperature. This study indicates that lower temperature may increase SARS-CoV-2 transmission (measured as an increased attack rate), but there is no evidence that temperature affects the severity of the disease (measured as case fatality rate). However, there are clearly other factors that affect the transmission of SARS-CoV-2, and many of these may be sensitive to interventions, e.g. through increased public awareness and public health response.</p>","PeriodicalId":37446,"journal":{"name":"Infection Ecology and Epidemiology","volume":"10 1","pages":"1792620"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-07-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/20008686.2020.1792620","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"38489506","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Garima Sharma, Florence Mutua, Ram Pratim Deka, Rajeshwari Shome, Samiran Bandyopadhyay, B R Shome, Naresh Goyal Kumar, Delia Grace, Tushar Kumar Dey, Nimita Venugopal, Swati Sahay, Johanna Lindahl
{"title":"A qualitative study on antibiotic use and animal health management in smallholder dairy farms of four regions of India.","authors":"Garima Sharma, Florence Mutua, Ram Pratim Deka, Rajeshwari Shome, Samiran Bandyopadhyay, B R Shome, Naresh Goyal Kumar, Delia Grace, Tushar Kumar Dey, Nimita Venugopal, Swati Sahay, Johanna Lindahl","doi":"10.1080/20008686.2020.1792033","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/20008686.2020.1792033","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a major global public health issue. In India, access to medicines is poorly regulated and therefore antibiotics in dairy cattle are commonly used by farmers without consulting with veterinarians. This study was conducted to understand practices and knowledge related to antibiotic use and AMR among dairy farmers and veterinary professionals in selected urban and peri-urban areas of India.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A total of 28 focus group discussions with farmers and 53 interviews with veterinary professionals were carried out.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Mastitiswas identified as the main animal health challenge. Antibiotic consultation behavior of farmers depended on the availability of veterinarians. Except in Bangalore, farmers were found to often treat animals on their own. They were found unaware of the concept of AMR, but knew the importance of vaccination. Veterinarians included in the study had a good understanding of antibiotics, AMR, and zoonotic diseases.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>The knowledge level and practices observed in the study related to the use/abuse of antibiotics can potentially increase the risk of development of AMR and its transfer in the community. Our findings can help support AMR - mitigation efforts in the country, including the design of better policies on antibiotic use in dairy.</p>","PeriodicalId":37446,"journal":{"name":"Infection Ecology and Epidemiology","volume":"10 1","pages":"1792033"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-07-12","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/20008686.2020.1792033","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"38489505","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Eithne Leahy, Rajeswari Shome, Ram Pratim Deka, Swati Sahay, Delia Grace, Stella Mazeri, Johanna F Lindahl
{"title":"Risk factors for <i>Brucella</i> spp. and <i>Coxiella burnetii</i> infection among small ruminants in Eastern India.","authors":"Eithne Leahy, Rajeswari Shome, Ram Pratim Deka, Swati Sahay, Delia Grace, Stella Mazeri, Johanna F Lindahl","doi":"10.1080/20008686.2020.1783091","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/20008686.2020.1783091","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Small ruminants are the main reservoirs for brucellosis and coxiellosis, two zoonotic diseases affecting livestock production, and posing a public health threat in India. Understanding disease prevalence and risk factors associated with small ruminant infection can help mitigate disease transmission. We report a cross-sectional survey in the states of Assam and Odisha in Eastern India. We interviewed 244 farmers to assess knowledge, attitude and practices relevant to brucellosis and coxiellosis infection. Serum samples from 411 goats and 21 sheep were analysed using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and Rose-Bengal <i>Brucella</i> agglutination plate test. Higher <i>Brucella</i> and <i>Coxiella burnetii</i> seroprevalence were found in Odisha (22% and 11.5%, respectively) than Assam (9.8% and 1.6%, respectively), and certain districts in Odisha were at higher risk. No association was found between seropositive animals and clinical signs, a challenge when attempting to identify seropositive animals in the herd. None of the farmers interviewed were aware of brucellosis, its aetiology, clinical form, or zoonotic risk. This study acts as a first indication of the extent of these diseases among small ruminants in these Indian states, highlighting how farming practices are associated with increased risk of infection. More research is urgently needed to mitigate zoonoses transmission in this region.</p>","PeriodicalId":37446,"journal":{"name":"Infection Ecology and Epidemiology","volume":"10 1","pages":"1783091"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-06-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/20008686.2020.1783091","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"38392120","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Present and future climatic suitability for dengue fever in Africa.","authors":"Dejene W Sintayehu, Nega Tassie, Willem F De Boer","doi":"10.1080/20008686.2020.1782042","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/20008686.2020.1782042","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The number of dengue fever incidence and its distribution has increased considerably in recent years in Africa. However, due to inadequate research at the continental level, there is a limited understanding regarding the current and future spatial distribution of the main vector, the mosquito<i>Aedes aegypti</i>, and the associated dengue risk due to climate change. To fill this gap we used reported dengue fever incidences, the presence of <i>Ae. aegypti</i>, and bioclimatic variables in a species distribution model to assess the current and future (2050 and 2070) climatically suitable areas. High temperatures and with high moisture levels are climatically suitable for the distribution of <i>Ae. aegypti</i> related to dengue fever. Under the current climate scenario indicated that 15.2% of the continent is highly suitable for dengue fever outbreaks. We predict that climatically suitable areas for <i>Ae. aegypti</i> related to dengue fever incidences in eastern, central and western part of Africa will increase in the future and will expand further towards higher elevations. Our projections provide evidence for the changing continental threat of vector-borne diseases and can guide public health policy decisions in Africa to better prepare for and respond to future changes in dengue fever risk.</p>","PeriodicalId":37446,"journal":{"name":"Infection Ecology and Epidemiology","volume":"10 1","pages":"1782042"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-06-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/20008686.2020.1782042","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"38484926","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Amir Emami, Fatemeh Javanmardi, Ali Akbari, Mohsen Moghadami, Hamid Bakhtiari, Farshad Falahati, Leila Hashemi Zadeh Fard Haghighi, Tahereh Rezaei
{"title":"Characteristics of deceased patients with CoVID-19 after the first peak of the epidemic in Fars province, Iran.","authors":"Amir Emami, Fatemeh Javanmardi, Ali Akbari, Mohsen Moghadami, Hamid Bakhtiari, Farshad Falahati, Leila Hashemi Zadeh Fard Haghighi, Tahereh Rezaei","doi":"10.1080/20008686.2020.1781330","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/20008686.2020.1781330","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Emergence of a new coronavirus causes a serious concern whether this can be stopped at all. The ongoing coronavirus disease created a substantial variation in the fatality rate over the world. The current report brought an explore about the epidemiological characteristics of deceased patients and the fatality rate after the first peak in Fars province which is the fourth most populous and large province in Iran. Of the 3702 confirmed cases with coVID-19, 87 patients passed away and so the fatality rate estimated 2.35. Also, it was derived that male sex, old age and underlying diseases especially diabetes were common characteristics of these victims.</p>","PeriodicalId":37446,"journal":{"name":"Infection Ecology and Epidemiology","volume":"10 1","pages":"1781330"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-06-17","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/20008686.2020.1781330","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"38392119","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Solveig Jore, Sophie O Vanwambeke, Daniel Slunge, Anders Boman, Karen A Krogfelt, Martin Tugwell Jepsen, Line Vold
{"title":"Spatial tick bite exposure and associated risk factors in Scandinavia.","authors":"Solveig Jore, Sophie O Vanwambeke, Daniel Slunge, Anders Boman, Karen A Krogfelt, Martin Tugwell Jepsen, Line Vold","doi":"10.1080/20008686.2020.1764693","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/20008686.2020.1764693","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Tick-borne diseases are emerging and re-emerging threats causing public health concerns in Europe and North America. Prevention and control requires understanding of human exposure and behaviour. The aim was to measure exposure to tick bites across Scandinavia, its spatial distribution and the associated risk factors. Methods We sent a web-based survey to a randomly chosen population and analysed answers by Principal Component Analysis and Chi-Square. Individual responses were aggregated at the municipality level to assess the spatial distribution of bites. Results Nearly 60% of adults reported bites at low levels (1-5 bites); however, the majority were not in their resident municipality. We found two spatial profiles: In their home municipalities, people were most often bitten in less, but not the least, urbanized areas. When visiting other municipalities, people were most frequently bitten in peri-urban areas. Running/walking in the forest, gardening, and paddling/rowing were activities most strongly associated with bites. Conclusion Tick bites affect the entire Scandinavian population, with a higher risk in Sweden compared to Denmark and Norway. The frequency of observation of ticks in the environment or on pets might be used as a proxy for the actual risk of exposure to tick bites. Our results indicates that urban-dwelling outdoor enthusiasts and inhabitants of rural areas must be equally targeted for prevention campaigns.</p>","PeriodicalId":37446,"journal":{"name":"Infection Ecology and Epidemiology","volume":"10 1","pages":"1764693"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-06-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/20008686.2020.1764693","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"38373777","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Martin Wierup, Ulrika Allard Bengtsson, Ivar Vågsholm
{"title":"Biosafety considerations and risk reduction strategy for a new veterinary faculty building and teaching hospital in Sweden.","authors":"Martin Wierup, Ulrika Allard Bengtsson, Ivar Vågsholm","doi":"10.1080/20008686.2020.1761588","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1080/20008686.2020.1761588","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>This paper describes a hazard- and risk-based strategy and recommendations on relevant biosafety levels in facility design of a new veterinary faculty building including a veterinary medical teaching hospital. Both animal and human health were considered.</p><p><strong>Materials and methods: </strong>Agents listed in the regulatory frameworks on animal and human health were identified as the main potential hazards. Suggestions on biosafety level and facility design were based on the official risk grouping of those agents, the associated risk management procedures, and biosafety experiences from previous faculty buildings.</p><p><strong>Results and discussion: </strong>It was suggested that VHC should not be designed for work with agents requiring facilities at biosafety levels 3 and 4, and that actions in cases of accidental exposure to notifiable infections should follow the regulatory requirements. Facilities requiring biosafety level 2 were identified from risk scenarios and transmission routes.Experiences from the first five years of operation revealed good prevention of spread of infection from patients in isolation facilities and successful elimination of Salmonella and MRSA from the large animal clinic.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>In order to avoid costly construction mistakes, an overall biosafety strategy should be formulated and used as guidance for architects and other relevant stakeholders designing facilities for the animal health sector. Regulatory requirements on infectious diseases must be complied with.</p>","PeriodicalId":37446,"journal":{"name":"Infection Ecology and Epidemiology","volume":"10 1","pages":"1761588"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2020-06-04","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://sci-hub-pdf.com/10.1080/20008686.2020.1761588","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"38325580","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}