Emerging Infectious Diseases最新文献

By using PCR testing, we found Neoehrlichia mikurensis DNA in 1.1% of ticks removed from persons in Sweden and Finland. Symptoms developed in 2 immunocompetent persons. Despite low transmission risk, infection can occur after short tick attachment. Our findings highlight the need to consider N. mikurensis in patients with unexplained symptoms after tick bite.

During 2022–2024, six cases of invasive fungal infection occurred among immunocompromised patients at Marseille University Hospital, Marseille, France. Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry initially identified Trichosporon inkin fungi. However, phylogenetic analysis of intergenic spacer region 1 and whole-genome sequences revealed the genetically distinct species T. austroamericanum. Analysis of core genome and mitogenome from 6 patient isolates and 1 environmental isolate revealed substantial genetic diversity among T. austroamericanum strains, indicating a polyclonal outbreak. Furthermore, the mitochondrial genome emerged as a potential marker for intraspecies differentiation, which potentially could aid in epidemiologic investigations. Identified in 2024 but potentially underestimated, T. austroamericanum has since been reported in case clusters from hospital settings in France, highlighting the need for accurate fungal identification and suggesting previously identified T. inkin cases should be re-evaluated for T. austroamericanum. Clinical T. austroamericanum is emerging in hospital settings and should be included in the differential diagnosis of fungal infections.

We sequenced a novel rhabdovirus, Tupavirus delphini (dolphin tupavirus), from the brain of a stranded dead Atlantic white-sided dolphin with severe encephalitis in Canada. In situ hybridization linked presence of the virus to the animal’s brain pathology and death. Our findings underscore the importance of monitoring marine mammals for unexpected pathogens.

We report an unvaccinated traveler from the United States who contracted fulminant fatal tick-borne encephalitis while visiting Switzerland. Climate changes and international travel are intensifying tick exposure for unvaccinated persons. The increasing incidence of tick-borne encephalitis across Europe underscores the importance of tick bite prevention and vaccination against tick-borne encephalitis virus.

The tickborne bacterial pathogen Neoehrlichia mikurensis has been detected in <1% of blood donors in Sweden. N. mikurensis can give rise to asymptomatic persistent infections. Up to 25% of Ixodes ricinus ticks in southern Norway are infected with N. mikurensis. We investigated the incidence of N. mikurensis infection among blood donors in this region. We detected N. mikurensis in the blood of 45/499 (9%) blood donors by independent PCR methods; 69% of those were repeatedly positive 1–7 months after the first detection and tested negative after doxycycline treatment. We tested 8/19 adult recipients of potentially infected blood; none tested positive for N. mikurensis at the time of testing (191–301 days after transfusion). Our study identified a very high rate of infection with N. mikurensis in blood donors in Norway; whether infection can be transmitted by transfusion of blood products, however, remains unclear.

For some patients who have Lyme disease (LD), nonspecific symptoms can persist after treatment and impair quality of life. Estimating the frequency and duration of such symptoms is challenging. Using commercial insurance claims data from 2017–2021 for enrollees residing in states where LD is common, we identified 24,503 case-patients with LD and matched them (1:5) with 122,095 control-patients with other diagnoses by demographics, medical service date, and inpatient/outpatient setting. We compared relative frequencies of diagnosis codes for pain, fatigue, and cognitive difficulties between case-patients and control-patients in the year after diagnosis. Those symptom codes occurred 5.0% more frequently among case-patients than among control-patients and comprised »11.0% of the total symptom codes among case-patients. Symptom code frequency among case-patients declined significantly in the 6–12 months after LD diagnosis and reached levels similar to control-patients by the end of the year, with the exception of fatigue.

Some patients with coccidioidomycosis experience prolonged respiratory and systemic symptoms. However, data on prevalence and persistence of most symptoms are lacking. Using an insurance claims database, we identified patients with coccidioidomycosis diagnoses in the United States during 2017–2023. We assessed prevalence of associated symptoms from 6 months before to 1 year after first diagnosis code (index date) and compared post–index date prevalence to baseline (within 6 to 4 months before index date). Among 2,640 patients, cough (20.8%), dyspnea (13.0%), and fatigue (8.8%) were the most common symptoms at index date. Dyspnea and erythema nodosum were elevated 3–6 months post–index date (p<0.03), and fatigue, headache, joint pain, and weakness were elevated 9–12 months post–index date compared with baseline (p<0.05).These findings demonstrate that symptoms can persist in coccidioidomycosis patients, which could help inform clinical management and refine estimates of the health and economic burden of coccidioidomycosis.

We describe the clinical symptoms and epidemiologic characteristics of a patient infected with avian influenza A(H10N3) virus in Guangxi Province, China, in December 2024. Whole-genome sequencing showed that the virus was highly homologous to a virus from Yunnan Province. H10 subtype viruses should be monitored for potential zoonotic or reassortant events.