Arboviral Diseases Branch, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Fort Collins, CO 80521, USA.
Epidemiol Infect. 2012 Sep;140(9):1632-6. doi: 10.1017/S0950268811002494. Epub 2011 Nov 29.
Accurate 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.
准确的西尼罗河病毒 (WNV) 病例数据有助于指导公共卫生教育和控制活动，并影响区域 WNV 血液制品筛查程序。在亚利桑那州的 WNV 疾病爆发期间，对脑膜炎或脑炎患者的记录进行了审查，以确定对 WNV 进行检测的比例。在确定患有脑膜炎或脑炎的 60 名患者中，有 24 名（40%）接受了 WNV 检测。与年龄≥50 岁的 17 名患者中的 12 名（71%）相比，年龄<50 岁的 43 名患者中仅有 12 名（28%）接受了 WNV 检测（P<0·01）。有临床虚弱或瘫痪体征、CSF 蛋白升高、住院或转至康复机构的患者也更有可能进行 WNV 检测。在年龄较小的人群和疾病较轻的人群中缺乏检测可能导致对 WNV 神经侵袭性疾病负担的严重低估。
