1. Serologic Follow-up of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus Cases and Contacts—Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
- Author
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Zyad Al Bandar, Huong Pham, Feda El Saleh, Elizabeth S. Russell, Azaibi Tamin, Lindsay Kim, Krishna Pradeep, Jennifer L Harcourt, Aaron M. Harris, Farida Al Hosani, Mary Khoury, Aron J. Hall, Roger Mir, Craig A. Kiebler, Ahmed Khudhair, Kimberly Pringle, Congrong Miao, Lia M. Haynes, Mariam Al Mulla, Natalie J. Thornburg, Stefan Weber, George Donnelly, Muna Abdalla, Hala Imambaccus, Kheir Abou Elkheir, Negar N. Alami, Naima Younis, Glen R. Abedi, and Susan I. Gerber
- Subjects
Adult ,Male ,0301 basic medicine ,Microbiology (medical) ,Pediatrics ,medicine.medical_specialty ,Adolescent ,Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus ,030106 microbiology ,United Arab Emirates ,serology ,Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay ,Antibodies, Viral ,medicine.disease_cause ,Asymptomatic ,Serology ,Young Adult ,03 medical and health sciences ,0302 clinical medicine ,Risk Factors ,Seroepidemiologic Studies ,Disease Transmission, Infectious ,medicine ,Humans ,Microneutralization Assay ,030212 general & internal medicine ,Young adult ,Child ,Fluorescent Antibody Technique, Indirect ,Articles and Commentaries ,Aged ,asymptomatic infection ,Aged, 80 and over ,Family Health ,business.industry ,Transmission (medicine) ,Infant, Newborn ,transmission ,Infant ,Middle Aged ,Infectious Diseases ,Abu dhabi ,Child, Preschool ,Middle East Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus ,Female ,medicine.symptom ,Coronavirus Infections ,business - Abstract
Background Although there is evidence of person-to-person transmission of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV) in household and healthcare settings, more data are needed to describe and better understand the risk factors and transmission routes in both settings, as well as the extent to which disease severity affects transmission. Methods A seroepidemiological investigation was conducted among MERS-CoV case patients (cases) and their household contacts to investigate transmission risk in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Cases diagnosed between 1 January 2013 and 9 May 2014 and their household contacts were approached for enrollment. Demographic, clinical, and exposure history data were collected. Sera were screened by MERS-CoV nucleocapsid protein enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and indirect immunofluorescence, with results confirmed by microneutralization assay. Results Thirty-one of 34 (91%) case patients were asymptomatic or mildly symptomatic and did not require oxygen during hospitalization. MERS-CoV antibodies were detected in 13 of 24 (54%) case patients with available sera, including 1 severely symptomatic, 9 mildly symptomatic, and 3 asymptomatic case patients. No serologic evidence of MERS-CoV transmission was found among 105 household contacts with available sera. Conclusions Transmission of MERS-CoV was not documented in this investigation of mostly asymptomatic and mildly symptomatic cases and their household contacts. These results have implications for clinical management of cases and formulation of isolation policies to reduce the risk of transmission., Transmission of Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus was not documented in this seroepidemiologic follow-up investigation of mostly asymptomatic and mildly symptomatic cases and their household contacts. This may have implications for isolation policies to reduce risk of transmission to others.
- Published
- 2018