Volume 17, Number 12—December 2011

Risks for human infection may be appreciable and can be reduced by workplace education.

Secretions and excretions from virus-infected cane mice and cotton rats might transmit disease to humans.

This virus is unlikely to be a zoonotic threat.

Mixed infection of enteroviruses may explain the rare complication of nail shedding.

Onychomadesis after HFMD

Early consideration of HeV and institution of infection control are critical for reducing human risk.

Two sequence types predominate and have lower virulence than other types.

Birds of 2 of 3 passerine species died after experimental infection with 2 strains from Mexico.

BSE can infect small ruminants and could be misdiagnosed as scrapie.

Candidate cell substrates neither accumulated abnormal prion protein nor propagated infectivity.

Large-scale vaccination of animals might have influenced virus evolution.

This assay identified new simian immunodeficiency viruses in primate bushmeat.

A novel astrovirus was found more frequently in rabbits with enteric disease than in asymptomatic animals.

Keywords: astrovirus, rabbit, enteritis, colitis, viruses

Although avian influenza (H1N1), or bird flu, might not be getting as much attention since the first cases were found in Hong Kong in 1997, it hasn’t gone away and still infects and kills dozens of persons every year. Researchers remained concerned about its potential to cause a large-scale, global outbreak. Because Hong Kong is one of the world’s most densely populated places, persons living there are at high risk for a rapidly spreading outbreak, particularly because wholesale markets selling live poultry are common. Do Hong Kong residents still perceive that they are at risk for bird flu, and are they taking the right steps to prevent it? One study surveyed Hong Kong residents over time and found that they are less worried about buying live poultry and about contracting with bird flu. These changes in perception of risk were associated with a decline in handwashing and covering coughs and sneezes, both of which help prevent influenza infections. A second study focused on poultry workers in Hong Kong and found a low level of knowledge about bird flu. Although many workers knew the symptoms, they were less likely to know how the disease is spread and how deadly it is. They also reported moderate to low levels of hand hygiene and other preventive measures.

Aedes aegypti are among the world’s most dangerous mosquitoes. Increases in commerce and travel have complicated the control of these mosquitoes because they facilitate spread of the mosquitoes to areas outside their normal habitat. To protect against the viruses these mosquitoes can carry (such as dengue and yellow fever viruses), we need to know where the mosquitoes come from and how they are being transported. Typically, they are found in tropical or subtropical climates, so their appearance in 2 tire yards in the Netherlands in 2010 was quite surprising. Using genetic markers, researchers traced the origin of the mosquitoes in the Netherlands to a tire shipment from Miami, Fla., where Aedes aegypti mosquitoes are more common.

Although avian influenza (H1N1), or bird flu, might not be getting as much attention since the first cases were found in Hong Kong in 1997, it hasn’t gone away and still infects and kills dozens of persons every year. Researchers remained concerned about its potential to cause a large-scale, global outbreak. Because Hong Kong is one of the world’s most densely populated places, persons living there are at high risk for a rapidly spreading outbreak, particularly because wholesale markets selling live poultry are common. Do Hong Kong residents still perceive that they are at risk for bird flu, and are they taking the right steps to prevent it? One study surveyed Hong Kong residents over time and found that they are less worried about buying live poultry and about contracting with bird flu. These changes in perception of risk were associated with a decline in handwashing and covering coughs and sneezes, both of which help prevent influenza infections. A second study focused on poultry workers in Hong Kong and found a low level of knowledge about bird flu. Although many workers knew the symptoms, they were less likely to know how the disease is spread and how deadly it is. They also reported moderate to low levels of hand hygiene and other preventive measures.

“Bat in the bedroom!” may sound far-fetched, but it’s actually one of the most common sources of bat exposure. Bat encounters in general are fairly common. To improve public safety, more than a decade ago the New York State Department of Health developed new public education programs and changed its guidelines so that rabies prevention treatment is recommended after any bat exposure, not just bites. Since that time, there has been a large increase in the number of exposures reported, bats submitted for testing, and persons receiving treatment. These increases might have resulted from the changes in guidelines. Of the bats tested, 3.4% percent had rabies. More testing of bats is needed to avoid unnecessary preventive treatment of persons exposed to noninfected bats.