Int Ophthalmol 2017 Aug 20. Epub 2017 Aug 20.

Department of Ophthalmology, Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, Private Bag 92019, Auckland, New Zealand.

Purpose: To report a case of presumed autoimmune retinopathy in a patient who had been diagnosed with chickenpox immediately prior to symptom onset.

Method: This is a retrospective case report with fundus autofluorescence and spectral-domain optical coherence tomography.

Results: A 29-year-old immunocompetent man presented with a two-month history of photopsia and a bluish light predominantly in the left eye with onset immediately following a diagnosis of chickenpox. Read More

J Paediatr Child Health 2017 Aug 9. Epub 2017 Aug 9.

Department of General Practice and Primary Health Care, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand.

Aim: The varicella vaccine has been proposed to be added to the childhood immunisation schedule in New Zealand as the fourth injectable at the 15-month event. We sought to understand the perceptions of caregivers and health-care providers regarding the potential introduction of routine varicella vaccination.

Methods: A qualitative exploratory study was conducted using semi-structured interviews with caregivers and providers (N = 20) in Auckland. Read More

J Clin Invest 2017 Aug 7. Epub 2017 Aug 7.

Department of Infectious Diseases, Aarhus University Hospital Skejby, Aarhus, Denmark.

Varicella zoster virus (VZV) typically causes chickenpox upon primary infection. In rare cases, VZV can give rise to life-threatening disease in otherwise healthy people, but the immunological basis for this remains unexplained. We report 4 cases of acute severe VZV infection affecting the central nervous system or the lungs in unrelated, otherwise healthy children who are heterozygous for rare missense mutations in POLR3A (one patient), POLR3C (one patient), or both (two patients). Read More

BMC Infect Dis 2017 Aug 3;17(1):538. Epub 2017 Aug 3.

Department of Hygiene, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, S-1, W-17, Chuo-ku, Sapporo, Hokkaido, 060-8556, Japan.

Background: Chickenpox is a common contagious disease that remains an important public health issue worldwide. Over 90% of unvaccinated individuals become infected, but infection occurs at different ages in different parts of the world. Many people have been infected by 20 to 30 years of age in China, and adults and pregnant women who become infected often develop severe infection. Read More

J Infect Public Health 2017 Jul 27. Epub 2017 Jul 27.

Dow Medical College, Dow University of Health Sciences, Baba-E-Urdu Road, Karachi 74200, Pakistan.

J Microbiol 2017 Aug 28;55(8):665-672. Epub 2017 Jul 28.

Department of Microbiology, Chungbuk National University, Cheongju, 28644, Republic of Korea.

Varicella-zoster virus (VZV) is a causative agent of chickenpox in primary infection and shingles after its reactivation from latency. Complete or almost-complete genomic DNA sequences for various VZV strains have been reported. Recently, clinical VZV strains were isolated from Korean patients whose genome was sequenced using high-throughput sequencing technology. Read More

Epidemiol Infect 2017 Sep 27;145(12):2618-2625. Epub 2017 Jul 27.

Virus Reference Department,National Infections Service,Public Health England,London,UK.

Varicella-zoster virus (VZV) infection (chickenpox) results in latency and subsequent reactivation manifests as shingles. Effective attenuated vaccines (vOka) are available for prevention of both illnesses. In this study, an amplicon-based sequencing method capable of differentiating between VZV wild-type (wt) strains and vOka vaccine is described. Read More

J Int Med Res 2017 Jan 1:300060517718770. Epub 2017 Jan 1.

1 School of Public Health, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.

Objective The Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention developed the China Infectious Disease Automated-alert and Response System (CIDARS) in 2008. The CIDARS can detect outbreak signals in a timely manner but generates many false-positive signals, especially for diseases with seasonality. We assessed the influence of seasonality on infectious disease outbreak detection performance. Read More

Arch Prev Riesgos Labor 2017 Jul to Sep;20(3):158-166

Salud Laboral, Hospital Universitario Sant Joan, Reus, Spain.

Aims: Chickenpox is a frequent and contagious disease in healthcare and social assistance settings, and there are limited data on seroprevalence among workers in this sector. We estimated susceptibility to chickenpox among workers, by demographic and occupational variables, and measured the rate of seroprotection after vaccination.

Methods: A retrospective seroprevalence study of chickenpox (varicella) and serological vaccine response. Read More

Enferm Infecc Microbiol Clin 2017 Jul 10. Epub 2017 Jul 10.

Influencia del entorno en el bienestar del niño y del adolescente, Institut de Recerca Sant Joan de Déu, Esplugues de Llobregat, Barcelona, España; Servicio de Urgencias de Pediatría, Institut de Recerca Sant Joan de Déu, Esplugues de Llobregat, Barcelona, España.

Introduction And Objective: The last years an increase of severe cases of invasive disease (ID) due to Streptococcus pyogenes or streptococcus b-hemolytic group A (SGA) had been detected. The aim of this study was to analyze the epidemiology and the clinical features of ID due to SGA in a tertiary Pediatric Hospital.

Material And Methods: Retrospective study in a Pediatric hospital, of all in-patients with final diagnosis of ID due to SGA during 6 years (2009-2014). Read More

Virus Res 2017 Jun 8;238:226-235. Epub 2017 Jul 8.

Department of Molecular Biology and Biochemistry, University of California-Irvine, Irvine, CA, 92697, USA. Electronic address:

Varicella zoster virus (VZV) causes varicella (chickenpox) during acute infection. Several studies have shown that T cells are early and preferential targets of VZV infection that play a critical role in disseminating VZV in to the skin and ganglia. However, the transcriptional changes that occur in VZV-infected T cells remain unclear due to limited access to clinical samples and robust translational animal models. Read More

Vaccine 2017 Aug 3;35(34):4368-4373. Epub 2017 Jul 3.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, USA. Electronic address:

Background: Two-dose varicella vaccination has been available in Beijing since 2012 in the private sector. We investigated a varicella outbreak in a highly vaccinated elementary school population.

Methods: A cohort study was carried out and a varicella case was defined as an acute onset of generalized maculopapulovesicular rash without other apparent cause in a student attending the school from March 29 through May 17, 2015. Read More

Am Fam Physician 2017 Jun;95(12):786-794

Conemaugh Family Medicine Residency Program, Johnstown, PA, USA.

Vaccines are one of the most successful medical advances in modern times. Most vaccine-preventable illnesses are unfamiliar to modern parents. Because of this, parents are increasingly questioning the necessity of immunizing their children, especially because no vaccine is completely free of adverse effects or the risk of complications. Read More

Andrologia 2017 Jul 3. Epub 2017 Jul 3.

Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Queen Mary Hospital, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China.

Human varicella zoster virus (VZV) is a member of the herpes virus family and affects humans only. Information about the presence of the virus in the semen samples of men affected by chickenpox is rather limited in the literature. Here, we reported a husband was affected by VZV during in vitro fertilisation treatment of his wife treated in our centre. Read More

J Endod 2017 Jun 26. Epub 2017 Jun 26.

Department of Endodontics, The Dental College of Georgia, Augusta University, Augusta, Georgia. Electronic address:

Herpes zoster along the maxillary division of the trigeminal nerve is a rare condition that is caused by reactivation of the varicella zoster virus that resides within the trigeminal ganglion after the primary infection of chickenpox. The disease may be manifested as a toothache during its prodromal stage. The active stage of the disease is characterized by the appearance of a vesicular rash. Read More

J Endod 2017 Aug 27;43(8):1230-1236. Epub 2017 Jun 27.

Department of Clinic of Oral Surgery, School of Dental Medicine, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia.

Introduction: Varicella zoster virus (VZV) and subsequent herpes zoster (HZ) infection have been proposed as a causative agent of periapical pathoses and root resorption. This review aimed to identify, synthesize, and present a critical analysis of the available data on the association among VZV, subsequent HZ infection, and the development of periapical pathoses and root resorption and to analyze the level of evidence of available studies.

Methods: The literature search covered MEDLINE, Science Citation Index Expanded, and Scopus. Read More

J Infect 2017 Jun;74 Suppl 1:S27-S33

Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, 630 West 168th Street, New York, NY 10032, USA. Electronic address:

Varicella and zoster continue to cause significant morbidity and even mortality in children and adults. Complications include bacterial superinfection, central nervous system manifestations such as meningitis, encephalitis, and cerebellar ataxia, and pain syndromes especially post herpetic neuralgia. Many developed countries but not all, are now administering live attenuated varicella vaccine routinely, with a decrease in the incidence of disease, providing personal and herd immunity. Read More

J Virol 2017 Sep 10;91(17). Epub 2017 Aug 10.

Division of Neuroimmunology and Neuroinfectious Diseases, Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA

Mechanisms of neuronal infection by varicella-zoster virus (VZV) have been challenging to study due to the relatively strict human tropism of the virus and the paucity of tractable experimental models. Cellular mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs) have been shown to play a role in VZV infection of nonneuronal cells, with distinct consequences for infectivity in different cell types. Here, we utilize several human neuronal culture systems to investigate the role of one such MAPK, the c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK), in VZV lytic infection and reactivation. Read More

PLoS One 2017 15;12(6):e0179537. Epub 2017 Jun 15.

Division of Infectious Diseases & Hospital Epidemiology, University Hospital Basel, University Basel, Basel, Switzerland.

Objective: The increasing number of refugees seeking asylum in Europe in recent years poses new challenges for the healthcare systems in the destination countries. The goal of the study was to describe the evolution of medical problems of asylum seekers at a tertiary care centre in Switzerland.

Methods: At the University Hospital Basel, we compared all asylum seekers during two 1-year time periods in 2004/05 and 2014/15 concerning demographic characteristics and reasons for referrals and hospitalizations. Read More

BMC Public Health 2017 Jun 12;17(1):570. Epub 2017 Jun 12.

School of Public Health, Fudan University, NO. 130 Dong-An Road, Shanghai, 200032, China.

Background: China Centre for Diseases Control and Prevention (CDC) developed the China Infectious Disease Automated Alert and Response System (CIDARS) in 2005. The CIDARS was used to strengthen infectious disease surveillance and aid in the early warning of outbreak. The CIDARS has been integrated into the routine outbreak monitoring efforts of the CDC at all levels in China. Read More

Rheumatology (Oxford) 2017 May 29. Epub 2017 May 29.

Department of Rheumatology, King's College London, London, UK.

Chickenpox and shingles can be more severe and occasionally life threatening in immunosuppressed patients. As such, some groups warrant a more detailed history, serological testing and consideration of prophylaxis following contact with the virus. Active disease may also require more aggressive treatment with antivirals. Read More

PLoS One 2017 18;12(5):e0177514. Epub 2017 May 18.

Department of Applied Mathematics, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, China.

Objectives: Varicella (chickenpox) is a highly transmissible childhood disease. Between 2010 and 2015, it displayed two epidemic waves annually among school populations in Shenzhen, China. However, their transmission dynamics remain unclear and there is no school-based vaccination programme in Shenzhen to-date. Read More

BMC Infect Dis 2017 May 19;17(1):356. Epub 2017 May 19.

Department of Epidemiology and Health Monitoring, Robert Koch Institute, Berlin, Germany.

Background: In 2004, universal childhood varicella vaccination was introduced in Germany. We aimed to determine the age-specific prevalence of anti-varicella zoster virus (VZV) IgG-antibodies among children in the pre-varicella vaccine era in Germany, to identify factors associated with VZV seropositivity, and to assess the suitability of a commercially available ELISA for VZV seroepidemiological studies by comparing it with an in-house fluorescent antibody to membrane antigen test (FAMA) as the gold standard.

Methods: Serum samples of 13,433 children and adolescents aged 1-17 years included in the population-based German Health Interview and Examination Survey for Children and Adolescents (KiGGS; conducted 2003-2006) were tested for anti-VZV IgG by ELISA. Read More

Indian J Radiol Imaging 2017 Jan-Mar;27(1):49-51

Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Radiology, Faculty of Dentistry, Ondokuz Mayis University, Samsun, Turkey.

The pneumonia virus of chickenpox is now known to cause scattered calcified foci in the lungs, however to our knowledge, recent literature has not discussed calcification in the salivary glands. A 15-year-old boy consulted the department of radiology because of a swelling on the right side of the submandibular area. Radiological assessment included an ultrasonography and computerized tomography scan of the neck area, which demonstrated intraparenchymal amorph calcification, with approximately 13 mm diameter in the right submandibular gland. Read More

BMC Neurol 2017 May 17;17(1):95. Epub 2017 May 17.

Department of Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M University College of Dentistry, 3302 Gaston Avenue, Dallas, TX, 75246, USA.

Background: Most people are initially infected with varicella zoster virus (VZV) at a young age and this infection results in chickenpox. VZV then becomes latent and reactivates later in life resulting in herpes zoster (HZ) or "shingles". Often VZV infects neurons of the trigeminal ganglia to cause ocular problems, orofacial disease and occasionally a chronic pain condition termed post-herpetic neuralgia (PHN). Read More

Hum Vaccin Immunother 2017 May 16:1-6. Epub 2017 May 16.

a Department of Pediatrics , Maulana Azad Medical College , New Delhi , India.

Varicella or chickenpox is a highly contagious disease with a high secondary attack rate. Almost 30% of Indian adolescents lack protective antibodies against varicella, emphasizing the need of routine varicella immunization. The Oka VZV is a well-established, safe and efficacious vaccine strain that is highly immunogenic and produces lifelong protective immunity. Read More

Pediatr Infect Dis J 2017 May 11. Epub 2017 May 11.

1Department of Ophthalmology, Hanyang University College of Medicine, Seoul, South Korea 2Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Internal Medicine, Hanyang University College of Medicine, Seoul, South Korea 3Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Department of Internal Medicine, Hanyang University College of Medicine, Seoul, South Korea.

A necrotizing retinitis in children is a rare but vision threatening ocular complication of chickenpox. We report a 10-year-old girl who developed chickenpox one month before presenting with panuveitis and necrotizing retinitis. After prompt antiviral treatment, her inflammatory signs were resolved. Read More

Euro Surveill 2017 Apr;22(17)

Robert Koch Institute, Department for Infectious Disease Epidemiology, Berlin, Germany.

In Germany, routine childhood varicella vaccination was implemented in 2004 with two doses recommended since 2009. We used an immunisation information system based on countrywide health insurance claims data to analyse vaccine effectiveness (VE) and factors influencing VE. We applied proportional hazard models to estimate VE under various conditions and compared the risk of acquiring varicella among unvaccinated children in regions with high vs low vaccination coverage (VC). Read More

Mater Sociomed 2017 Mar;29(1):14-16

Burch International University, Sarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina.

Objective: To investigate possible prognostic values of CD4+, CD8+ T-lymphocytes, CD4/CD8 ratio to clinical course of chickenpox in immunocompetent hosts.

Materials And Methods: We performed a prospective study which included 69 immunocompetent patients with chickenpox who were addmited to Clinic for infectious disease, Clinical Center University of Sarajevo, in a 18 month period. All patients were divided into two groups depending on clinical presentation on admission. Read More

Hum Vaccin Immunother 2017 Jul 8;13(7):1495-1504. Epub 2017 May 8.

a University of Basel, Institute of Pharmaceutical Medicine (ECPM) , Basel , Switzerland.

Herpes zoster (HZ) or "shingles" results from a reactivation of the varicella zoster virus (VZV) acquired during primary infection (chickenpox) and surviving in the dorsal root ganglia. In about 20% of cases, a complication occurs, known as post-herpetic neuralgia (PHN). A live attenuated vaccine against VZV is available for the prevention of HZ and subsequent PHN. Read More

Vaccine 2017 May 2;35(24):3153-3161. Epub 2017 May 2.

Department of Family Medicine and Primary Care, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong.

Objectives: To describe and systematically review the modelling and reporting of cost-effectiveness analysis of vaccination in Hong Kong, and to identify areas for quality enhancement in future cost-effectiveness analyses.

Methods: We conducted a comprehensive and systematic review of cost-effectiveness studies related to vaccination and government immunisation programmes in Hong Kong published from 1990 to 2015, through database search of Pubmed, Web of Science, Embase, and OVID Medline. Methodological quality of selected studies was assessed using Consolidated Health Economic Evaluation Reporting Standards checklist (CHEERS). Read More

Georgian Med News 2017 Feb(263):105-111

Tbilisi State Medical University, Department of Pharmacotherapy; JSC "Curatio", Tbilisi, Georgia.

Administration of Aacetylsalicylic acid in children with viral infections (influence B, chickenpox) can be related with development of Reye syndrome - severe encephalopathy and liver insufficiency with mortality in 50% of cases. During Reye syndrome most important is deficiency of carnitine and hepatocyte damage. Decreased amount of carnitine impairs the energy function of mitochondria and gluconeogenesis as well as production of urea. Read More

Epidemiol Infect 2017 Jul 27;145(10):2129-2136. Epub 2017 Apr 27.

Department of Infectious Diseases,Children's Hospital of Fudan University,No. 399 Wanyuan Road,Shanghai,China.

The outbreaks of varicella occurring in kindergartens and schools are increasingly notified in Shanghai despite the implementation of one-dose varicella vaccination. We analyzed surveillance data on the notified outbreaks of varicella in Minhang District of Shanghai during 2008-2014. A total of 13 511 varicella cases and 154 outbreaks involving 1558 (11·5%) cases were reported. Read More

Sci Rep 2017 Apr 24;7(1):1077. Epub 2017 Apr 24.

Centre for Health Economics Research & Modeling Infectious Diseases (CHERMID), Vaccine & Infectious Disease Institute (VAXINFECTIO), University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium.

Re-exposure to chickenpox may boost varicella-zoster virus (VZV) immunity in the elderly. This secondary immune response is hypothesized to confer protection against herpes zoster. We longitudinally sampled 36 adults over the course of one year after re-exposure to chickenpox. Read More

Aten Primaria 2017 Apr 19. Epub 2017 Apr 19.

Servicio de Epidemiología, Subdirección de Epidemiología, Dirección General de Salud Pública, Consejería de Sanidad, Comunidad de Madrid, Madrid, España.

Objective: Varicella vaccine was recommended in the Community of Madrid (CM) at 15months of age between November 2006 and December 2013. The objective was to describe the impact of vaccination on the incidence of varicella in the CM during the period 2001-2015.

Design: A descriptive study of cases of varicella reported to the Sentinel Physician Network of the CM and the cases recorded in the Minimum Basic Data Set at hospital discharge was carried out. Read More

Cutis 2017 Mar;99(3):207-211

Department of Dermatology, Wake Forest University School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, USA.

Herpes zoster (HZ), or shingles, is commonly seen in older adults but does occur in children. Routine administration of the varicella vaccine started in 1995 in the United States; since then, the incidence of varicella and HZ has declined. We report a case of HZ in an otherwise healthy 19-month-old boy who had been vaccinated at 13 months of age and recovered fully after acyclovir treatment. Read More

Mol Med Rep 2017 Jun 7;15(6):3847-3851. Epub 2017 Apr 7.

Department of Life Science, Gachon University, Seongnam‑Si, Kyeonggi‑Do 461‑701, Republic of Korea.

Varicella‑zoster virus (VZV), a ubiquitous human α‑herpesvirus, is the causative agent of chickenpox and shingles. In the present study, we investigated the antiviral activity of a 70% ethanol extract of Lysimachia mauritiana (LME) against VZV. LME strongly interfered with the replication of both laboratory and clinical strains of VZV without affecting the viability of MRC‑5 cells. Read More

Medicine (Baltimore) 2017 Apr;96(14):e6546

aDepartment of Pediatrics bThe Vaccine Bio Research Institute cThe Catholic Blood and Marrow Transplantation Center dDivision of Infectious Diseases, Department of Internal Medicine, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Republic of Korea.

Although acyclovir prophylaxis against varicella zoster virus (VZV) infection for ≥1 year is recommended after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT), the emergence of acyclovir-resistant viruses and adverse drug effects cannot be ignored. We investigated the cumulative incidence of VZV infection after allogeneic HCT in children receiving a shorter duration of acyclovir prophylaxis than recommended and evaluated the appropriateness of the short duration of acyclovir prophylaxis.Medical records of 217 children who received allogeneic HCT were retrospectively reviewed until a median of 25 months (range = 1-59 months) after HCT. Read More

Hum Vaccin Immunother 2017 Jul 31;13(7):1714-1721. Epub 2017 Mar 31.

a Vaccinations Programme, Health Department , Region of Murcia , Spain.

Outbreaks in temporary camps are an important risk for the health of the displaced population. The town of Lorca (Murcia, Spain) suffered 2 earthquakes on May 2011 that required the re-housing of 1,424 victims in a temporary camp. Following 4 cases of chickenpox control measures were adopted among the displaced population. Read More

Vaccine 2017 Apr 27;35(18):2351-2357. Epub 2017 Mar 27.

Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences, 4301 Jones Bridge Rd, Building A, Room 1040A, Bethesda, MD, USA.

Background/objectives: Infection with varicella zoster virus (VZV) produces lifelong immunity, but duration of post-vaccination immunity has not been established. The purpose of this study is to determine if a difference exists in the long-term seropositivity of anti-VZV antibodies in a cohort of young adults who were vaccinated against varicella as compared to a similar cohort with a history of chickenpox disease, and to determine which variables best predict waning seropositivity following varicella vaccination.

Methods: This retrospective cohort study captures immunization and serology data from approximately 10,000 recruits who entered basic military training between January 1, 2008, and December 31, 2015, and who have childhood immunization records in the Air Force Aeromedical Services Information Management System. Read More

J Virol 2017 Jun 26;91(12). Epub 2017 May 26.

State Key Laboratory of Virology, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science, Wuhan Institute of Virology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, China

Although a varicella-zoster virus (VZV) vaccine has been used for many years, the neuropathy caused by VZV infection is still a major health concern. Open reading frame 7 (ORF7) of VZV has been recognized as a neurotropic gene in vivo, but its neurovirulent role remains unclear. In the present study, we investigated the effect of ORF7 deletion on VZV replication cycle at virus entry, genome replication, gene expression, capsid assembly and cytoplasmic envelopment, and transcellular transmission in differentiated neural progenitor cells (dNPCs) and neuroblastoma SH-SY5Y (dSY5Y) cells. Read More

Vaccine 2017 Apr 23;35(18):2365-2371. Epub 2017 Mar 23.

Beijing Haidian District Center for Diseases Control and Prevention, People's Republic of China.

Background: 1-Dose varicella vaccination was recommended for children in Beijing before November 2012. To further control school-based outbreaks and decrease incidence, a 2-dose vaccination was implemented in 2013. We described the varicella epidemiology and assessed impact of the 2-dose vaccination in Haidian district, Beijing, 2007-2015. Read More

J Neuroimmunol 2017 Jul 18;308:112-117. Epub 2017 Mar 18.

Department of Neurology, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO 80045, USA. Electronic address:

Varicella zoster virus (VZV) is a ubiquitous, human alphaherpesvirus that produces varicella on primary infection then becomes latent in ganglionic neurons along the entire neuraxis. In elderly and immunocompromised individuals, VZV reactivates and travels along nerve fibers peripherally resulting in zoster. However, VZV can also spread centrally and infect cerebral and extracranial arteries (VZV vasculopathy) to produce transient ischemic attacks, stroke, aneurysm, sinus thrombosis and giant cell arteritis, as well as granulomatous aortitis. Read More

BMJ Case Rep 2017 Mar 22;2017. Epub 2017 Mar 22.

West Suffolk Hospitals NHS Trust, Bury Saint Edmunds, UK.

Isolated lower limb hypoplasia is a rare consequence of maternal congenital varicella syndrome (CVS). The hypoplastic limb is susceptible to multiple injuries, including fractures, especially if there is associated muscle weakness and lack of sensation. We describe a unique index case of a woman aged 26 years with a background of CVS who presented with a distal femur fracture following a fall onto her insensate, hypoplastic right leg. Read More

BMC Infect Dis 2017 Mar 21;17(1):220. Epub 2017 Mar 21.

Bradford Institute for Health Research, Bradford, UK.

Background: Cytomegalovirus (CMV), Epstein Barr virus (EBV) and varicella-zoster virus (VZV) are common herpesviruses frequently acquired in childhood, which establish persistent, latent infection and are likely to impact the developing immune system. Little is known about the epidemiology of CMV and EBV infections in contemporary UK paediatric populations, particularly whether age at infection differs by ethnic group.

Methods: Children enrolled in the Born in Bradford Allergy and Infection Study had a blood sample taken and a questionnaire completed at 12 and 24 months of age. Read More

An Bras Dermatol 2016 Sep-Oct;91(5 suppl 1):72-75

Hospital S. António Capuchos - Centro Hospitalar Lisboa Central - Lisbon, Portugal.

Wolf's isotopic response designates the appearance of two subsequent unrelated dermatoses in the same anatomic location. We report the case of a 51-year-old man with a medical history of chronic lymphocytic leukemia without known extra-hematopoietic involvement. The patient developed a disseminated papulo-vesiculous eruption, diagnosed as varicella. Read More

J Med Virol 2017 Sep 2;89(9):1686-1689. Epub 2017 May 2.

NASA Johnson Space Center, Houston, Texas.

Varicella zoster virus (VZV) in saliva from six herpes zoster patients and one chickenpox patient was found to be exclusively associated with epithelial cells by confocal microscopy. VZV localization with antibody specific to the VZV glycoprotein E was detected primarily on the membrane but was also inside the cell. Epithelial cells with VZV were still present in saliva in one out of two tested zoster patients after 10 months of recovery. Read More

Commun Dis Intell Q Rep 2016 Sep 30;40(3):E391-E400. Epub 2016 Sep 30.

Deputy Director, National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance of Vaccine Preventable Diseases, Kids Research Institute, The Children's Hospital at Westmead; New South Wales.

Introduction: The Paediatric Active Enhanced Disease Surveillance (PAEDS) network is a hospital-based active surveillance system employing prospective case ascertainment of selected uncommon vaccine preventable diseases and potential adverse events following immunisation (AEFI). PAEDS enhances other Australian surveillance systems by providing prospective detailed clinical and laboratory data for the same child.

Methods: Specialist surveillance nurses screen hospital admissions, emergency department records, laboratory and other data, to prospectively identify hospitalised children aged under 15 years in 5 paediatric tertiary referral hospitals in New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, Western Australia and Queensland. Read More

Expert Rev Vaccines 2017 Apr 28;16(4):391-400. Epub 2017 Feb 28.

a Epidemiology Branch, Division of Viral Diseases , National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , Atlanta , GA , USA.

Introduction: Varicella vaccines are highly effective at preventing disease, but varicella may occur among vaccinated persons (termed breakthrough varicella). Breakthrough varicella is generally mild, but severe cases have been reported. The objective of this review is to describe severe breakthrough varicella. Read More