Epidemiologic features and environmental risk factors of severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome, Xinyang, China.
BACKGROUND: Severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS) is an emerging infectious disease discovered in rural areas of Central China in 2009, caused by a novel bunyavirus, SFTS virus (SFTSV). The disease usually presents as fever, thrombocytopenia, and leukocytopenia, with case-fatality rates...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Public Library of Science (PLoS)
2014-05-01
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| Series: | PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases |
| Online Access: | http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC4014392?pdf=render |
| _version_ | 1819130661978505216 |
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| author | Kun Liu Ning Cui Li-Qun Fang Bing-Jun Wang Qing-Bin Lu Wei Peng Hao Li Li-Yuan Wang Song Liang Hong-Yu Wang Yao-Yun Zhang Lu Zhuang Hong Yang Gregory C Gray Sake J de Vlas Wei Liu Wu-Chun Cao |
| author_facet | Kun Liu Ning Cui Li-Qun Fang Bing-Jun Wang Qing-Bin Lu Wei Peng Hao Li Li-Yuan Wang Song Liang Hong-Yu Wang Yao-Yun Zhang Lu Zhuang Hong Yang Gregory C Gray Sake J de Vlas Wei Liu Wu-Chun Cao |
| author_sort | Kun Liu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | BACKGROUND: Severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS) is an emerging infectious disease discovered in rural areas of Central China in 2009, caused by a novel bunyavirus, SFTS virus (SFTSV). The disease usually presents as fever, thrombocytopenia, and leukocytopenia, with case-fatality rates ranging from 2.5% to 30%. Haemaphysalis longicornis was suspected to be the most likely vector of SFTSV. By the end of 2012, the disease had expanded to 13 provinces of China. SFTS patients have been reported in Japan and South Korea, and a disease similar to SFTS has been reported in the United States. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We characterized the epidemiologic features of 504 confirmed SFTS cases in Xinyang Region, the most severely SFTS-afflicted region in China from 2011 to 2012, and assessed the environmental risk factors. All cases occurred during March to November, with the epidemic peaking from May to July. The patients' ages ranged from 7 to 87 years (median 61 years), and the annual incidence increased with age (χ2 test for trend, P<0.001). The female-to-male ratio of cases was 1.58, and 97.0% of the cases were farmers who resided in the southern and western parts of the region. The Poisson regression analysis revealed that the spatial variations of SFTS incidence were significantly associated with the shrub, forest, and rain-fed cropland areas. CONCLUSIONS: The distribution of SFTS showed highly significant temporal and spatial heterogeneity in Xinyang Region, with the majority of SFTS cases being elderly farmers who resided in the southern and western parts of the region, mostly acquiring infection between May and July when H. longicornis is highly active. The shrub, rain-fed, and rain-fed cropland areas were associated with high risk for this disease. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-22T09:03:10Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-9b0beac9ac91415e942efc213eeebedb |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1935-2727 1935-2735 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-22T09:03:10Z |
| publishDate | 2014-05-01 |
| publisher | Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
| record_format | Article |
| series | PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases |
| spelling | doaj.art-9b0beac9ac91415e942efc213eeebedb2022-12-21T18:31:41ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases1935-27271935-27352014-05-0185e282010.1371/journal.pntd.0002820Epidemiologic features and environmental risk factors of severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome, Xinyang, China.Kun LiuNing CuiLi-Qun FangBing-Jun WangQing-Bin LuWei PengHao LiLi-Yuan WangSong LiangHong-Yu WangYao-Yun ZhangLu ZhuangHong YangGregory C GraySake J de VlasWei LiuWu-Chun CaoBACKGROUND: Severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS) is an emerging infectious disease discovered in rural areas of Central China in 2009, caused by a novel bunyavirus, SFTS virus (SFTSV). The disease usually presents as fever, thrombocytopenia, and leukocytopenia, with case-fatality rates ranging from 2.5% to 30%. Haemaphysalis longicornis was suspected to be the most likely vector of SFTSV. By the end of 2012, the disease had expanded to 13 provinces of China. SFTS patients have been reported in Japan and South Korea, and a disease similar to SFTS has been reported in the United States. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We characterized the epidemiologic features of 504 confirmed SFTS cases in Xinyang Region, the most severely SFTS-afflicted region in China from 2011 to 2012, and assessed the environmental risk factors. All cases occurred during March to November, with the epidemic peaking from May to July. The patients' ages ranged from 7 to 87 years (median 61 years), and the annual incidence increased with age (χ2 test for trend, P<0.001). The female-to-male ratio of cases was 1.58, and 97.0% of the cases were farmers who resided in the southern and western parts of the region. The Poisson regression analysis revealed that the spatial variations of SFTS incidence were significantly associated with the shrub, forest, and rain-fed cropland areas. CONCLUSIONS: The distribution of SFTS showed highly significant temporal and spatial heterogeneity in Xinyang Region, with the majority of SFTS cases being elderly farmers who resided in the southern and western parts of the region, mostly acquiring infection between May and July when H. longicornis is highly active. The shrub, rain-fed, and rain-fed cropland areas were associated with high risk for this disease.http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC4014392?pdf=render |
| spellingShingle | Kun Liu Ning Cui Li-Qun Fang Bing-Jun Wang Qing-Bin Lu Wei Peng Hao Li Li-Yuan Wang Song Liang Hong-Yu Wang Yao-Yun Zhang Lu Zhuang Hong Yang Gregory C Gray Sake J de Vlas Wei Liu Wu-Chun Cao Epidemiologic features and environmental risk factors of severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome, Xinyang, China. PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases |
| title | Epidemiologic features and environmental risk factors of severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome, Xinyang, China. |
| title_full | Epidemiologic features and environmental risk factors of severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome, Xinyang, China. |
| title_fullStr | Epidemiologic features and environmental risk factors of severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome, Xinyang, China. |
| title_full_unstemmed | Epidemiologic features and environmental risk factors of severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome, Xinyang, China. |
| title_short | Epidemiologic features and environmental risk factors of severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome, Xinyang, China. |
| title_sort | epidemiologic features and environmental risk factors of severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome xinyang china |
| url | http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC4014392?pdf=render |
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