Outbreak of caliciviruses in the Singapore military, 2015

BMC Infectious Diseases

Research Article

Ching Ging Ng¹  Boon Huan Tan¹  Freddy Jun Xian Neo¹  Peijun Ting¹  Jimmy Jin Phang Loh¹  Wei Xin Yeo²  Christine Qiu Han Gao²  Vernon Jian Ming Lee² 

[1] DSO National Laboratories, 27, Medical Drive, #09-01, 117510, Singapore, Singapore;HQ Medical Corps, Singapore Armed Forces, HQ Medical Corps, 701 Transit Road #04-01, 778910, Singapore, Singapore;

关键词: Sapovirus;    Norovirus;    Calicivirus;    Outbreak;    Military;    Singapore;    Phylogenetics;    Capsid;    Gastroenteritis;   

DOI  :  10.1186/s12879-017-2821-y

 received in 2017-01-02, accepted in 2017-11-06,  发布年份 2017

来源: Springer

【 摘 要 】

BackgroundFrom 31 August to 9 September 2015, a total of 150 military personnel at a military institution in Singapore were infected with acute gastroenteritis (AGE) with an attack rate of approximately 3%. This study aimed to determine the epidemiology of the outbreak, investigate its origins, and discuss measures to prevent future occurrences.MethodsAfter the AGE outbreak was declared on 31 August 2015, symptom surveys, hygiene inspections, and the testing of water, food, and stool samples were initiated. We collected 86 stool samples from AGE cases and 58 samples from food-handlers during the course of the outbreak and these stool samples were tested for 8 bacterial pathogens and 2 viral pathogens (i.e., norovirus and sapovirus).ResultsWe detected Sapovirus (SaV), group I Norovirus (NoV GI) and group II Norovirus (NoV GII) from the stool samples of AGE cases. Further sequence analyses showed that the AGE outbreak in August was caused mainly by three rarely reported calicivirus novel genotypes: NoV GI.7, NoV GII.17 and SaV GII.3. Control measures implemented focused on the escalation of personal and environmental hygiene, which included the separation of affected and unaffected soldiers, enforcement of rigorous hand-washing and hygiene, raising awareness of food and water safety, and disinfection of communal areas with bleach.ConclusionsThis study identified both NoV and SaV as the causative agents for an AGE outbreak at a Singapore military camp in August 2015. This study is also the first to report SaV as one of the main causative agents, highlighting the importance of caliciviruses as causative agents of AGE outbreaks in the Singapore military. As there are no commercially available vaccines against caliciviruses, strict personal hygiene and proper disinfection of environmental surfaces remain crucial to prevent calicivirus outbreak and transmission.

【 授权许可】

CC BY   
© The Author(s). 2017