Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Human bocavirus Infections found in Shenzhen

Published Date: 2012-10-09 16:45:16

Entry-exit Inspection and Quarantine Bureau warns the mass travelers to take personal protection measures following the consecutive detection of 4 human Human bocavirus cases at Shenzhen Port.

A baby was taken to a medical inspection room for further temperature monitoring, body examination and epidemic investigation after it was found that its temperature had exceeded normal value through infrared thermal imaging temperature monitoring by personnel from Shenzhen Entry-exit Inspection and Quarantine Bureau at Shenzhen Port. The baby, less than one year old, was from Hong Kong. Its armpit temperature was 37.6 centigrade and it had obvious canker in mouth. After throat swab inspection, the baby was diagnosed as a case of human bocavirus infection, the 4th in Shenzhen within one month. The other 3 cases were respectively found from Huanggang Port and Shenzhen Bay Port.

As a new virus that closely relates to human's acute respiratory infection, bocavirus, through airborne transmission, makes children from 6 months to 3 years old vulnerable to pneumonia, bronchitis, bronchopneumonia and other diseases, with main clinical symptoms of cough, fever, gasping, diarrhoea, and so on. Autumn is high occurrence season for the virus. The virus is not easy to be distinguished [symptomatically] from other respiratory virus infection and has caused great attention of many scholars and experts.

Shenzhen Entry-exit Inspection and Quarantine Bureau warns that travellers should take care of their personal hygiene and avoid going to the public areas with high dense crowds. The children should also be taken good care of. Travellers should make immediate report to an inspection and quarantine department and take hospitalization if finding any above mentioned symptoms before entering Shenzhen.

[byline: Connie and Elaine]

-- communicated by: ProMED-mail from HealthMap alerts

[Although it is clear that influenza, parainfluenza, respiratory syncytial virus, human metapneumovirus, and adenovirus are important causes of pneumonia, the role of rhinoviruses and some of the newly described viruses, including human coronaviruses and human bocavirus, is harder to determine.

Human bocavirus is a small single-stranded DNA-containing virus classified in the family _Parvoviridae_. It is one of the many respiratory pathogens affecting infants and young children. 4 species of human bocavirus (HBoV) have been recently discovered and classified in the Bocavirus genus (family Parvoviridae, subfamily Parvovirinae). Although detected both in respiratory and stool samples worldwide, HBoV1 is predominantly a respiratory pathogen, whereas HBoV2, HBoV3, and HBoV4 have been found mainly in stool.

A variety of signs and symptoms have been described in patients with HBoV infection including rhinitis, pharyngitis, cough, dyspnea, wheezing, pneumonia, acute otitis media, fever, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea. Many of these potential manifestations have not been systematically explored, and they have been questioned because of high HBoV co-infection rates in symptomatic subjects and high HBoV detection rates in asymptomatic subjects. However, evidence is mounting to show that HBoV1 is an important cause of lower respiratory tract illness. The best currently available diagnostic approaches are quantitative PCR and serology. [See: T Jartti, et al. Rev Med Virol. 2012 Jan;22(1):46-64).

The name bocavirus is derived from bovine and canine, referring to the 2 known hosts for other members of this genus; the bovine parvovirus which infects cattle, and the minute virus of canines which infects dogs.[7] Parvoviruses (Latin: small viruses) have a 5 kilobase long single-stranded DNA, and they use some of their host's replication proteins to copy their DNA. - Mod.CP


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