SARS suspected in Texas air base personnel

Jane Berg
SARS
Pneumonia

Editor's Note: A correction was made to paragraph 5 on July 14.

Jul 11, 2003 (CIDRAP News) – At least 10 people from Dyess Air Force Base near Abilene, Tex., have been isolated at home because of respiratory symptoms suggestive of SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome), according to Air Force and Abilene officials. Three of the people recently traveled through Toronto, site of the largest SARS outbreak outside Asia, and the others came in contact with those three.

Initial test results on eight of the patients have come back negative for SARS, Dyess officials said in a statement today. Two of the tests were positive for Streptococcus pneumoniae, which is often seen in patients with pneumonia, Abilene city officials reported in a news release. The air base listed the number of ill people at 11, but the city's news release said 10.

Three Dyess personnel traveled through Toronto on Jul 1 and were at the airport only an hour waiting for connecting flights, according to the Abilene release. Toronto was declared free of local SARS transmission Jul 2 by the World Health Organization (WHO) and by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on Jul 7.

The ill people exhibited "minimal symptoms of SARS," according to the news release. Additional tests are being conducted, and definitive results may not be available for 2 or 3 weeks, officials said.

Master Sgt. Bill Lincicome of the Dyess Air Force Base public affairs office told CIDRAP News the patients were seen at the base, which has a clinic for less severe illnesses and injuries, and then referred to a hospital in Abilene. He said the base has been working with the city to provide the public with information because many Dyess personnel live in the city rather than on the base.

The city news release said no one has required hospitalization and all the patients are isolated at home under the care of Dyess medical personnel. Because they had a connection to Toronto and had symptoms consistent with SARS, it was necessary to isolate them in accordance with procedures recommended by the CDC.

Dyess spokesman Capt. David May stated in the news release, "Although there is no concrete evidence that any of our quarantined members have SARS, we are following all CDC guidelines and performing the necessary precautions as if they do to ensure no infections spread and our people are well taken care of."

In other SARS developments, the CDC this week canceled its travel alert notices for Hong Kong and Toronto. More than 30 days—three times the incubation period—has passed since the last reported probable case of SARS in both places, the agency said. CDC travel alerts do not advise against travel, but inform travelers of a health concern and suggest specific precautions. CDC travel alerts remain in effect for Beijing and Taiwan.

As of today there have been 8,437 probable SARS cases and 813 deaths worldwide, according to the WHO.

See also:

CDC announcement on travel alerts
http://www.cdc.gov/media/pressrel/r030710.htm

WHO SARS case count
http://www.who.int/csr/sars/country/2003_07_11/en/

This week's top reads

  1. Common diabetes drug lowers SARS-CoV-2 levels, clinical trial finds

    The mean SARS-CoV-2 viral load was reduced 3.6-fold with metformin.

    Stephanie Soucheray
    metformin

  2. Trial data support non-antibiotic treatment for bacterial vaginosis

    The trial found that the broad-spectrum antiseptic dequalinium chloride was noninferior to metronidazole, and more tolerable.

    Chris Dall
    Bacterial vaginosis

  3. Study: HHS's COVID vaccine campaign saved $732 billion in averted infections, costs

    Researchers say the campaign encouraged 22 million Americans to complete their primary COVID-19 vaccine series, preventing nearly 2.6 million infections.

    Mary Van Beusekom
    Vaccine assembly line

  4. Studies yield more clues about H5N1 avian flu susceptibility, spread in dairy cows

    Researchers who examined cow mammary gland tissue found wide expression of avian and human influenza A receptors, which could explain high virus loads in milk of infected cows.

    Lisa Schnirring
    cow udders

  5. USDA to test ground beef for traces of H5N1 avian flu virus as more poultry outbreaks reported

    Dairy cows make up about 7% of US beef production.

    Lisa Schnirring
    ground beef

  6. High-risk patients with COVID symptoms should use PCR rather than rapid tests, study suggests

    The sensitivity of RATs was 47%, compared with RT-PCR and 80% versus viral culture.

    Mary Van Beusekom
    Stack of rapid COVID tests

  7. With H5N1 avian flu silently spreading in US cattle, wastewater testing could be key

    Wastewater treatment systems that have no intake of animal-related sewage could serve as sentinels for human disease, experts say.

    Mary Van Beusekom
    Wastewater plant

  8. Colorado officials probe source of H5N1 in cows as USDA confirms more infected mammals

    Monitoring of about 70 farm workers found no symptoms, and the state's wastewater sampling pilot has found no flu rise.

    Lisa Schnirring
    vet and dairy herd

  9. USDA genome study sheds light on H5N1 avian flu spillover to cows, but data gaps remain

    In other developments, the USDA said ground beef samples were negative for the virus and Michigan and Colorado announced emergency measures.

    Lisa Schnirring
    dairy cows in barn

  10. Case report bolsters evidence for H5N1 avian flu spread from cow to Texas dairy worker

    The patient worked at a farm where the illness was suspected in cows and in a region where H5N1 was confirmed in other dairy herds.

    Lisa Schnirring
    milking parlor worker