Posted on 11/15/2007 12:07:57 PM PST by steve86
ATLANTA (AP) - A mutated version of a common cold virus has caused 10 deaths in the last 18 months, U.S. health officials said Thursday.
Adenoviruses usually cause respiratory infections that aren't considered lethal. But a new variant has caused at least 140 illnesses in New York, Oregon, Washington and Texas, according to a report issued Thursday by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The illness made headlines in Texas earlier this year, when a so- called boot camp flu sickened hundreds at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio. The most serious cases were blamed on the emerging virus and one 19-year-old trainee died.
"What really got people's attention is these are healthy young adults landing in the hospital and, in some cases, the ICU," said Dr. John Su, an infectious diseases investigator with the CDC.
There are more than 50 distinct types of adenoviruses tied to human illnesses. They are one cause of the common cold, and also trigger pneumonia and bronchitis. Severe illnesses are more likely in people with weaker immune systems.
Some adenoviruses have also been blamed for gastroenteritis, conjunctivitis and cystitis.
There are no good antiviral medications for adenoviruses. Patients usually are treated with aspirin, liquids and bed rest.
In the CDC report, the earliest case of the mutated virus was found in an infant girl in New York City, who died last year. The child seemed healthy right after birth, but then became dehydrated and lost appetite. She died 12 days after she was born.
Tests found that she been infected with a form of adenovirus, called Ad14, but with some little differences, Su said.
It's not clear how the changes made it more lethal, said Linda Gooding, an Emory University researcher who specializes in adenoviruses.
Earlier this year, hundreds of trainees at Lackland became ill with respiratory infections. Tests showed a variety of adenoviruses in the trainees, but at least 106—and probably more—had the mutated form of Ad14, including five who ended up in an intensive care unit
In April, Oregon health officials learned of a cluster of cases at a Portland-area hospital. They ultimately counted 31 cases, including seven who died with severe pneumonia. The next month, Washington state officials reported four hospitalized patients had the same mutated virus. One, who also had AIDS, died.
The Ad14 form of adenovirus was first identified in 1955. In 1969, it was blamed for a rash of illnesses in military recruits stationed in Europe, but it's been detected rarely since then. But it seems to growing more common. The strain accounted for 6 percent of adenovirus samples collected in 22 medical facilities in 2006, while none was seen the previous two years, according to a study published this month in the medical journal Clinical Infectious Diseases.
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On the Net:
Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report: http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr
What's the title/author? Sounds like a good read.
Go here and read:
http://www.fumento.com/disease/flu2005.html
This looks like it is related to people living under stress in close quarters with questionable sanitation practices. Nasty bugs hit places like bootcamps and dorms. Every year, meningitis hits at least a couple college dorms.
My boss in an infectious disease specialist. He says that we won’t be able to handle anything like 1918/19. There aren’t enough respirators in the country to deal with all the pulmonary complications much less negative pressure isolation rooms.
It will happen again. We won’t be much better prepared for it now than in 1918-19. And people will point fingers, “why didn’t you warn us when the first 10 people died.”
My boss in an infectious disease specialist. He says that we won’t be able to handle anything like 1918/19. There aren’t enough respirators in the country to deal with all the pulmonary complications much less negative pressure isolation rooms.
It will happen again. We won’t be much better prepared for it now than in 1918-19. And people will point fingers, “why didn’t you warn us when the first 10 people died.”
Sorry for the double post - my computer seems to have the hiccups.
Actually it's the rhinovirus that's usually implicated. There are numerous exceptions because "common cold" is such a generic description.
The article refers to young, healthy people as being affected which brings to mind the horrors of 1919, but in fact the 10 deaths (so far) appear all to have occurred in people with some sort of immune compromise. This would be a good one to keep a sharp eye on, but no panic yet. IMHO, of course.
I’m a little embarassed to admit it, but I don’t remember. I read so many books I often don’t remember titles or authors.
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." - Manuel II Palelologus
ping
You are exactly right.
A contributing factor in the 1919 epidemic is that most of the medical personnel came down with the disease themselves. While sterile methods might reduce this in a modern epidemic, it would probably not be enough to help without a functional vaccine.
In the long run, it’s not a good idea to bet against viruses and bacteria. They’ve been around a lot longer than people and in a race between their evolutionary strategies and our technology, in the long term put your money on the germs.
Interestingly, even the 1919 epidemic didn’t come close to some of the great epidemics of the past for percentage of the population killed. We really don’t have a clue about how drastically this can affect society.
IIRC, most "colds" are caused by strain of either adenovirus or rhinovirus. There is or was someone on this forum who claimed to be a virologist, but I forget the screenname.
I couldn't say much about viruses more than they can be either DNA or RNA, single or double stranded, usually covered by an an assortment of glycoproteins that depend on obligate intracellular parasitism.
As far as taxonamy goes, it appears to me that adenovirus or rhinovirus are the name of the genus, and strain is used for the name of the species. Any corrections will be appreciated.
I think it was Kelly2000, iirc, she was working on her doctorate, again iirc.
Thanks for the ping. I’ll be linking it soon. See comment# 33.
Drat, see comment# 32.
Interesting. My son was at Lackland from the middle of February till April. Said he was sick for the first 4 weeks he was there.
I thought he was exaggerating.
I have that illness right now. Just got off the phone after calling the Doctors office.
She said it has been around for about two years.
What I needed was bed rest, aspirin and fluids.
She said it has been going around for about two years.
So...after I post this I will be back in bed.
We never get colds/flu.
But this year due to I am guessing both of us having health problems and only getting out to get fresh veggies/fruit every two weeks we have come home with a bug everytime.
Same story all over our small rural cut off from the big world community.
Almost if something is laying dormant in us and coming back.
Started out in the bones as in every injury and joint then the next time it was a shoulders/sinus then a gastro/sinus now we both are down with head colds.
This is over just a 2 month span.
Our friends who have more serious health issues get it worse like down in the lungs. I have a feeling the fact that they have pre existing illness and smoke may be what allows the bug to go in to bronchitis and or pneumonia.
So that is all I know from personal exp. never get sick and this year started in Oct and have not been well.
Also we got our usual flu shot but because we got it so early the Doc says we will need another one in the spring do to the longer flu seasons, we are not going to no thanks.
Also we have the last two times went grocery shopping at midnight when no families (school kids) are out.
Being a health careprovider 28yrs I am well aware of hand washing and all the abc of preventative care.
Having trach care to do coughing is essential so I might remind all ya’ll if you have a cough with normal breathing it is a GOOD thing, like sneezing it is the body’s way of clearing secreations.
Unlike the rest of you we are able to take the time to rest, drink tons of liqued and one thing I make the quad son do is get up twice a day and sit in his chair to work them lungs when he has a bug in the resp. system.
I like to use a child’s dose daily year around of Mucinex even though he is an adult and it really helps bring up the lung fossils (deep junk) related to his under pre existing health issues.
No more classes at OSU with college kids where we are packed in like sardines (really kids sitting on the floor it is so crowded).
We are now getting lectures on DVD. However that is due to the decline in his over all health this last year.
I hope you and your family get well.
Not to mention how folks Globe Trot.
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