Clinical and Laboratory Findings That Differentiate Herpes Simplex Virus Central Nervous System Disease from Enteroviral Meningitis.

Background. It can be difficult for clinicians to distinguish between the relatively benign enteroviral (EnV) meningitis and potentially lethal herpes simplex virus (HSV) central nervous system (CNS) disease. Very limited evidence currently exists to guide them. Objective. This study sought to identify clinical features and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) findings associated with HSV CNS disease. Methods. Given that PCR testing often is not immediately available, this chart review study sought to identify clinical and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) findings associated with HSV meningitis over a 6-year period. In cases where PCR was not performed, HSV and EnV were assigned based on clinical criteria. Results. We enrolled 166 consecutive patients: 40 HSV and 126 EnV patients. HSV patients had a mean 40.4 versus 31.3 years for EnV, p = 0.005, seizures 21.1% versus 1.6% for EnV, p < 0.001, altered mental status 46.2% versus 3.2% for EnV, p < 0.001, or neurological deficits 44.7% versus 3.9% for EnV, p < 0.001. CSF neutrophils were lower in HSV (median 3.0% versus 9.5%, p = 0.0002); median lymphocytes (87.0% versus 67.0%, p = 0.0004) and protein (0.9 g/L versus 0.6 g/L, p = 0.0005) were elevated. Conclusion. Our study found that HSV patients were older and more likely to have seizure, altered mental status, or neurological deficits than patients with benign EnV meningitis. HSV cases had lower CSF neutrophils, higher lymphocytes, and higher protein levels.

Detection of enterovirus D68 in Canadian laboratories.

The recent emergence of a severe respiratory disease caused by enterovirus D68 prompted investigation into whether Canadian hospital and provincial laboratories can detect this virus using commercial and laboratory-developed assays. This study demonstrated analytical sensitivity differences between commercial and laboratory-developed assays for the detection of enterovirus D68.

Incidence of Hospitalization for Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infection amongst Children in Ontario, Canada: A Population-Based Study Using Validated Health Administrative Data.

IMPORTANCE: RSV is a common illness among young children that causes significant morbidity and health care costs. OBJECTIVE: Routinely collected health administrative data can be used to track disease incidence, explore risk factors and conduct health services research. Due to potential for misclassification bias, the accuracy of data-elements should be validated prior to use. The objectives of this study were to validate an algorithm to accurately identify pediatric cases of hospitalized respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) from within Ontario's health administrative data, estimate annual incidence of hospitalization due to RSV and report the prevalence of major risk factors within hospitalized patients. STUDY DESIGN AND SETTING: A retrospective chart review was performed to establish a reference-standard cohort of children from the Ottawa region admitted to the Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario (CHEO) for RSV-related disease in 2010 and 2011. Chart review data was linked to Ontario's administrative data and used to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of algorithms of RSV-related ICD-10 codes within provincial hospitalization and emergency department databases. Age- and sex-standardized incidence was calculated over time, with trends in incidence assessed using Poisson regression. RESULTS: From a total of 1411 admissions, chart review identified 327 children hospitalized for laboratory confirmed RSV-related disease. Following linkage to administrative data and restriction to first admissions, there were 289 RSV patients in the reference-standard cohort. The best algorithm, based on hospitalization data, resulted in sensitivity 97.9% (95%CI: 95.5-99.2%), specificity 99.6% (95%CI: 98.2-99.8%), PPV 96.9% (95%CI: 94.2-98.6%), NPV 99.4% (95%CI: 99.4-99.9%). Incidence of hospitalized RSV in Ontario from 2005-2012 was 10.2 per 1000 children under 1 year and 4.8 per 1000 children aged 1 to 3 years. During the surveillance period, there was no identifiable increasing or decreasing linear trend in the incidence of hospitalized RSV, hospital length of stay and PICU admission rates. Among the Ontario RSV cohort, 16.3% had one or more major risk factors, with a decreasing trend observed over time. CONCLUSION: Children hospitalized for RSV-related disease can be accurately identified within population-based health administrative data. RSV is a major public health concern and incidence has not changed over time, suggesting a lack of progress in prevention.

Tissue viral DNA is associated with chronic allograft nephropathy.

Viral infections post-renal transplant (Tx) impact on outcome. Increased rejection rates and decreased renal function secondary to acute CMV, EBV and HHV-6 infections are well described. However, the clinical significance of a mere presence of these viruses on kidney tissue biopsy remains questionable. Thirty-six kidney biopsies obtained from 17 renal transplants (five females) and two combined liver-kidney recipients (one female) were retrospectively evaluated. Age at Tx ranged from 1.7 to 17.2 yr (median = 7.4). Biopsies were performed as protocol biopsies or when renal function deteriorated, between 6 weeks and 11 yr post-Tx (median = 1.2 yr). Immunosuppression included steroids and combination of tacrolimus/cyclosporin, mycophenolate mofetil/azathioprin and induction therapy. Fourteen patients received antiviral prophylaxis (ganciclovir/valganciclovir/acyclovir). Renal tissue was classified according to Banff '97 criteria. Tissue CMV, EBV, HHV-6 and HHV-7 was analyzed by PCR. We used an estimation of GFR from average plasma Cystatin C (CysC) and slopes of 1/CysC to assess renal function. The 16/36 biopsies were positive for one virus; 5/36 biopsies were positive for two viruses. In the infected group, Banff '97 scores for interstitial fibrosis (ci) and tubular degeneration/atrophy (ct) were significantly higher (p < 0.03 vs. the non-infected group for both). The slope of 1/CysC, or the proportion of patients on antiviral prophylaxis, did not differ significantly between both groups. In conclusion, a significant number of kidney biopsies showed PCR positivity for CMV, EBV, HHV-6 and HHV-7. This was associated with a significantly higher Banff score for ci and ct; while renal function was not affected. Further controlled studies are required.