Schlaich Clara, Riemer Tobias, Lamshöft Maike, Hagelstein Jan-Gerd, Oldenburg Marcus
Hamburg Port Health Center, Institute for Occupational and Maritime Medicine, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Germany.
Int Marit Health. 2010;61(1):28-31.
Despite international notification requirements, the magnitude of disease transmission on board ships remains undetermined. This case series aims to exemplify that varicella aboard ships is a topic of interest for maritime medicine and of public health significance.
Systematic presentation of cases of chickenpox reported to the Hamburg Port Health Authority between November 2007 and April 2008. A systematic literature search on 'ships and chickenpox' was performed.
Five crew cases of chickenpox were reported from two passenger ships and two cargo ships. The cases originated from Indonesia (2), the Philippines (1), and Sri Lanka (2). Three cases were notified by the shipmaster, one by a general practitioner, and one by the immigration service. Sources of infection were other crewmembers, passengers, and persons in the home countries.
This description of five varicella cases aboard ships points to the significance of the disease among seafarers. Many seafarers originate from tropical countries where seroconversion to varicella zoster virus generally occurs in late adolescents and adults. Thus, a substantial portion of the crew may be non-immune and have the potential to introduce the disease from their home country to the ship, or are at risk for infection on the ship. Port health authorities, shipmasters, and doctors need to be well informed about the relevance of chickenpox on ships and the recommended control measures. Travellers should be advised to report to the ship doctor with any signs of infectious disease.
尽管有国际通报要求，但船上疾病传播的规模仍未确定。本病例系列旨在举例说明船上水痘是海洋医学关注的一个话题，且具有公共卫生意义。
系统呈现2007年11月至2008年4月期间向汉堡港口卫生当局报告的水痘病例。对“船舶与水痘”进行了系统的文献检索。
两艘客船和两艘货船报告了5例船员水痘病例。病例分别来自印度尼西亚（2例）、菲律宾（1例）和斯里兰卡（2例）。3例由船长通报，1例由全科医生通报，1例由移民局通报。感染源为其他船员、乘客以及这些船员母国的人员。
对船上5例水痘病例的描述表明了该病在海员中的重要性。许多海员来自热带国家，在这些国家，水痘带状疱疹病毒血清转换通常发生在青少年晚期和成年人阶段。因此，相当一部分船员可能没有免疫力，有可能将疾病从母国带到船上，或者在船上有感染风险。港口卫生当局、船长和医生需要充分了解船上水痘的相关性以及推荐的控制措施。应建议旅行者如有任何传染病迹象向船上医生报告。
