The American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene - Volume 91, Issue 2, August 2014

Collecting blood samples from individuals recruited into clinical research projects in sub-Saharan Africa can be challenging. Strikingly, one of the reasons for participant reticence is the occurrence of local rumors surrounding “blood stealing” or “blood selling.” Such fears can potentially have dire effects on the success of research projects—for example, high dropout rates that would invalidate the trial's results—and have ethical implications related to cultural sensitivity and informed consent. Though commonly considered as a manifestation of the local population's ignorance, these rumors represent a social diagnosis and a logical attempt to make sense of sickness and health. Born from historical antecedents, they reflect implicit contemporary structural inequalities and the social distance between communities and public health institutions. We aim at illustrating the underlying logic governing patients' fear and argue that the management of these beliefs should become an intrinsic component of clinical research.

From 2008 to 2012, the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Fogarty International Clinical Research Fellows Program (FICRF) provided 1-year mentored research training at low- and middle-income country sites for American and international post-doctoral health professionals. We examined the FICRF applicant pool, proposed research topics, selection process, and characteristics of enrollees to assess trends in global health research interest and factors associated with applicant competitiveness. The majority (58%) of 67 US and 57 international Fellows were women, and 83% of Fellows had medical degrees. Most applicants were in clinical fellowships (41%) or residencies (24%). More applicants proposing infectious disease projects were supported (59%) than applicants proposing non-communicable disease (NCD) projects (41%), although projects that combined both topic areas were most successful (69%). The numbers of applicants proposing research on NCDs and the numbers of these applicants awarded fellowships rose dramatically over time. Funding provided to the FICRF varied significantly among NIH Institutes and Centers and was strongly associated with the research topics awarded.

In 2009, a severe epidemic of dengue disease occurred in Sri Lanka, with higher mortality and morbidity than any previously recorded epidemic in the country. It corresponded to a shift to dengue virus 1 as the major disease-causing serotype in Sri Lanka. Dengue disease reached epidemic levels in the next 3 years. We report phylogenetic evidence that the 2009 epidemic DENV-1 strain continued to circulate within the population and caused severe disease in the epidemic of 2012. Bayesian phylogeographic analyses suggest that the 2009 Sri Lankan epidemic DENV-1 strain may have traveled directly or indirectly from Thailand through China to Sri Lanka, and after spreading within the Sri Lankan population, it traveled to Pakistan and Singapore. Our findings delineate the dissemination route of a virulent DENV-1 strain in Asia. Understanding such routes will be of particular importance to global control efforts.

Of 53,633 suspected dengue cases reported to a passive dengue surveillance system in Puerto Rico during 2005–2010, 949 individuals were reported on more than one occasion and 21 had laboratory-confirmed dengue on two separate occasions. Median time between illness episodes was 2.9 years (range: 62 days–5.3 years). Seventeen (81%) individuals with sequential episodes of dengue were male, and seven (33%) were adults. All 21 individuals experienced one episode and seven (33%) individuals experienced both episodes during a large epidemic that occurred in 2010. These observations show that heterotypic dengue virus immunity that protects against illness may have considerable variability but typically does not last longer than 3 years.

During 2012, four north-central Texas counties experienced high West Nile virus (WNV) disease incidence. Aerial insecticide spraying was conducted in two counties. To evaluate the effect of spraying on WNV disease, we calculated incidence rate ratios (IRRs) in treated and untreated areas by comparing incidence before and after spraying; for unsprayed areas, before and after periods were defined by using dates from a corresponding sprayed area. In treated areas, WNV neuroinvasive disease incidence before and after spraying was 7.31/100,000 persons and 0.28/100,000 persons, respectively; the IRR was 26.42 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 12.42–56.20). In untreated areas, the before and after incidence was 4.80/100,000 persons and 0.45/100,000 persons, respectively; the IRR was 10.57 (95% CI: 6.11–18.28). The ratio of IRRs was 2.50 (95% CI: 0.98–6.35). Disease incidence decreased in both areas, but the relative change was greater in aerial-sprayed areas.

Minimal information is available on the incidence of Crimean–Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF) virus and hantavirus infections in Georgia. From 2008 to 2011, 537 patients with fever ≥ 38°C for ≥ 48 hours without a diagnosis were enrolled into a sentinel surveillance study to investigate the incidence of nine pathogens, including CCHF virus and hantavirus. Of 14 patients with a hemorrhagic fever syndrome, 3 patients tested positive for CCHF virus immunoglobulin M (IgM) antibodies. Two of the patients enrolled in the study had acute renal failure. These 2 of 537 enrolled patients were the only patients in the study positive for hantavirus IgM antibodies. These results suggest that CCHF virus and hantavirus are contributing causes of acute febrile syndromes of infectious origin in Georgia. These findings support introduction of critical diagnostic approaches and confirm the need for additional surveillance in Georgia.

In this study we analyze population dynamics of hantavirus rodent hosts and prevalence of infection over a 2-year period in Southern Brazil, a region with a high incidence of hantavirus pulmonary syndrome. The 14 small mammal species captured were composed of 10 rodents and four marsupials, the six most abundant species being Akodon serrensis, Oxymycterus judex, Akodon montensis, Akodon paranaensis, Oligoryzomys nigripes, and Thaptomys nigrita. These species displayed a similar pattern with increasing population sizes in fall/winter caused by recruitment and both, increase in reproductive activity and higher hantavirus prevalence in spring/summer. Specific associations between A. montensis/Jaborá Virus (JABV) and O. nigripes/Juquitiba-like Virus (JUQV-like) and spillover infections between A. paranaensis/JABV, A. serrensis/JABV, and A. paranaensis/JUQV-like were observed. Spillover infection in secondary hosts seems to play an important role in maintaining JABV and JUQV-like in the hantavirus sylvatic cycle mainly during periods of low prevalence in primary hosts.

We screened 217 bats of at least 20 species from 17 locations in Kenya during July and August of 2006 for the presence of adenovirus, rhabdovirus, and paramyxovirus nucleic acids using generic reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) and PCR assays. Of 217 bat fecal swabs examined, 4 bats were adenovirus DNA-positive, 11 bats were paramyxovirus RNA-positive, and 2 bats were rhabdovirus RNA-positive. Three bats were coinfected by two different viruses. By sequence comparison and phylogenetic analysis, the Kenya bat paramyxoviruses and rhabdoviruses from this study may represent novel viral lineages within their respective families; the Kenya bat adenoviruses could not be confirmed as novel, because the same region sequences from other known bat adenovirus genomes for comparison were lacking. Our study adds to previous evidence that bats carry diverse, potentially zoonotic viruses and may be coinfected with more than one virus.

This study was designed to examine the height-for-age z-scores (HAZ), and the prevalence of intestinal inflammation, gastrointestinal infections with parasites, and enteroaggregative Escherichia coli (EAEC) in rural Panamanian children. Stool microscopy and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing for EAEC detected Giardia lamblia (32%, 32 of 100) and EAEC (13%, 11 of 87) in the study participants, respectively. Anthropometric analyses showed that those children who were > 12 months of age had lower HAZ scores (mean of −1.449) than the reference population. As a group, the children in the study 1 to 5 years of age did not show recovery from the previously mentioned decline in terms of their HAZ. The HAZ means of the children infected with G. lamblia, EAEC, and Ascaris lumbricoides were −1.49, −1.67, and −2.11, respectively. Furthermore, the study participants with A. lumbricoides and EAEC infections in the presence of lactoferrin showed another decrease of 0.19 and 0.13, respectively, in their HAZ means.

Among human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) -infected adults and children in Africa, diarrheal disease remains a major cause of morbidity and mortality. We evaluated the effectiveness of provision and home-based reinforcement of a point-of-use water filtration device to reduce diarrhea among 361 HIV-infected adults in western Kenya by comparing prevalence of self-reported diarrhea before and after these interventions. After provision of the filter, 8.7% of participants reported diarrhea compared with 17.2% in the 3 months before filter provision (odds ratio [OR] = 0.39, 95% confidence interval [95% CI] = 0.23–0.66, P < 0.001). The association was similar among 231 participants who were already taking daily cotrimoxazole prophylaxis before being given a filter (OR = 0.47, 95% CI = 0.25–0.88, P = 0.019). Educational reinforcement was also associated with a modest reduction in self-reported diarrhea (OR = 0.50, 95% CI = 0.20–0.99, P = 0.047). Provision and reinforcement of water filters may confer significant benefit in reducing diarrhea among HIV-infected persons, even when cotrimoxazole prophylaxis is already being used.

Meningococcal disease causes considerable morbidity and has a high case-fatality rate. In the United Kingdom, the meningococcal quadrivalent vaccine is recommended for travelers visiting the meningitis belt of Africa. We analyzed 302 responses to a cross-sectional study conducted in 2010 of travelers who had visited the meningitis belt recently or were shortly due to travel there. Using the results of an online questionnaire, we assessed knowledge and understanding of meningococcal disease and likelihood of uptake of meningococcal immunization before travel. Meningococcal vaccine uptake was 30.1%. Although global scores in the questionnaire did not correlate with vaccine uptake, knowledge of the meningitis belt and knowledge of certain key symptoms or signs were statistically associated with high vaccine uptake. We conclude that improved education of travelers may improve vaccine uptake before travel to the meningitis belt in Africa.

Bangkok, Thailand, is a city considered to be at low risk for melioidosis. We describe 10 goats that died of melioidosis in Bangkok. Half of them were born and reared in the city. Multilocus sequence typing ruled out an outbreak. This finding challenges the assumption that melioidosis is rarely acquired in central Thailand.

Trench fever is poorly known by the staff of health facilities that manage febrile patients in Senegal. Bartonella quintana DNA was identified in 5 of 274 (2%) febrile patients from two rural dispensaries and 2 of 71 (3%) head lice specimens collected from the same villages.

Currently, the body louse is the only recognized vector of Bartonella quintana, an organism that causes trench fever. In this work, we investigated the prevalence of this bacterium in human lice in different African countries. We tested 616 head lice and 424 body lice from nine African countries using real-time polymerase chain reaction targeting intergenic spacer region 2 and specific B. quintana genes. Overall, B. quintana DNA was found in 54% and 2% of body and head lice, respectively. Our results also show that there are more body lice positive for B. quintana in poor countries, which was determined by the gross domestic product, than in wealthy areas (228/403 versus 0/21, P < 0.001). A similar finding was obtained for head lice (8/226 versus 2/390, P = 0.007). Our findings suggest that head lice in Africa may be infected by B. quintana when patients live in poor economic conditions and are also exposed to body lice.

Anaplasmosis is an emerging infectious disease caused by infection with the bacterium Anaplasma phagocytophilum. In the eastern United States, A. phagocytophilum is transmitted to hosts through the bite of the blacklegged tick, Ixodes scapularis. We determined the realized reservoir competence of 14 species of common vertebrate hosts for ticks by establishing the probability that each species transmits two important strains of A. phagocytophilum (A. phagocytophilum human-active, which causes human cases, and A. phagocytophilum variant 1, which does not) to feeding larval ticks. We also sampled questing nymphal ticks from ∼150 sites in a single county over 2 years and sampled over 6 years at one location. White-footed mice (Peromyscus leucopus) and Eastern chipmunks (Tamias striatus) were the most competent reservoirs for infection with the A. phagocytophilum human-active strain. Across the county, prevalence in ticks for both strains together was 8.3%; ticks were more than two times as likely to be infected with A. phagocytophilum human-active as A. phagocytophilum variant 1.

Understanding Mycobacterium tuberculosis biodiversity and transmission is significant for tuberculosis control. This short report aimed to determine the genetic diversity of M. tuberculosis isolates from an outpatient clinic in Panama City. A total of 62 M. tuberculosis isolates were genotyped by 12 loci mycobacterial interspersed repetitive units-variable number of tandem repeats (MIRU-VNTR) and Spoligotyping. Forty-five (72.6%) of the isolates showed unique MIRU-VNTR genotypes, and 13 (21%) of the isolates were grouped into four clusters. Four isolates showed polyclonal MIRU-VNTR genotypes. The MIRU-VNTR Hunter-Gaston discriminatory index reached 0.988. The Spoligotyping analysis revealed 16 M. tuberculosis families, including Latin American-Mediterranean, Harlem, and Beijing. These findings suggest a wide genetic diversity of M. tuberculosis isolates at one outpatient clinic. A detailed molecular epidemiology survey is now warranted, especially following second massive immigration for local Panama Canal expansion activities.

Buruli ulcer (BU) is a disease affecting the skin, subcutaneous fat, and bone tissues. Wound care is important in the prevention of disabilities. Awareness of current wound care practices in BU-endemic regions is necessary for future wound care interventions. Thirty-one health care workers in Ghana and Benin were interviewed with a semi-structured interview, complemented by structural observations. Quantitative data were analyzed through t tests and one-way analysis of variance, and qualitative data through descriptive statistics. There appeared to be a general understanding of wound assessment. A large variety of different topical antiseptics was reported to be used, pressure irrigation was never reported. Gauze was the main dressing type and a moist environment was preferred, but could not be maintained. Bleeding and pain were observed frequently. Standard of wound care differed importantly between health care personnel and between institutions and adherence to World Health Organization guidelines was low.