ABSTRACT
We attempted to assess the role of enteroviruses in the etiology of myocarditis (MC), pericarditis (PC) and dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) among 15 in-patients at a public hospital in Belém, Brazil, from November 1992 to December 1993. We obtained stool specimens and throat swabs from each patient (particularly acute cases) and, when possible, acute and convalescent serum samples for both isolation and serological procedures. MC, PC and DCM ocurred in 10, 2 and 3 patients, respectively, mostly in the 0- to 10- year age group. Neutralizing antibody seroconversions were detected as follows: one for Coxsackievirus (Cox) B2 in one patient suffering from MC, and two for Cox B4, in patients with DCM and MC. In addition, antibody titers of 1/320 against Cox B2 and Cox B4 were noted in two other patients, one suffering from PC and the other presenting MC. Isolation of echovirus (ECHO) serotype 1 was recorded ina a patient with MC, without either seroconversion or high antibody levels for Cox B 1 to 6. These results indicate that enteroviruses may be involved in the etiology of MC, PC and DCM in the Amazon region.
Subject(s)
Humans , Infant , Child, Preschool , Child , Adolescent , Adult , Middle Aged , Cardiomyopathy, Dilated/virology , Enterovirus/physiology , Myocarditis/virology , Pericarditis/virology , Brazil , Enterovirus/isolation & purification , Enterovirus/physiology , Feces/virology , In Situ Hybridization , Polymerase Chain ReactionABSTRACT
Amostra de soro obtida de paciente com a sindrome de Guillain-Barre revelou-se positiva quanto a presenca de anticorpos para o virus linfotropico humano T (HTLV-I) pelo metodo imuno-enzimatico (ELISA) e a analise por "Western-Blot". Resultaram negativos os testes visando a deteccao de enterovirus (incluindo poliovirus) a partir de material fecal, tanto em cultura de tecidos como em camundongos recem-nascidos; exames com amostras de soro aguda e convalescente nao exibiram qualquer evidencia de infeccao recente pelos tres tipos de poliovirus. O teste de Paul-Bunnel, assim como o "ELISA" para a deteccao de IgM anti-citomegalovirus resultaram negativos. Nao foi registrada, no presente caso, quer a leucemia adulta de celulas T, quer linfomas.