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An outbreak of Aseptic Meningitis due to echovirus type 30 in two cities of Turkey

E Ozkaya1, K Hizel, G Uysal

  • 1Virology Department of Refik Saydam Central Institute of Hygiene, Ankara, Turkey. poliolab@superonline.com

European Journal of Epidemiology
|September 17, 2003
PubMed

Insights

An outbreak of aseptic meningitis in Turkey was caused by echovirus 30. This study details the epidemiology and clinical findings of this viral meningitis outbreak.

Area of Science:

  • Virology
  • Epidemiology
  • Public Health

Background:

  • Aseptic meningitis outbreaks can be caused by enteroviruses.
  • Echovirus type 30 is a known pathogen responsible for meningitis.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To report the first documented outbreak of aseptic meningitis due to echovirus 30 in Turkey.
  • To describe the clinical and epidemiological characteristics of the outbreak.

Main Methods:

  • Retrospective review of medical files for 176 cases meeting the clinical case definition.
  • Enterovirus culture from cerebrospinal fluid and/or stool samples of 86 patients.

Main Results:

  • Echovirus type 30 was isolated from 38 patients (44%) with viral meningitis.
  • Clinical and laboratory findings were consistent with typical viral meningitis.

Conclusions:

  • Echovirus 30 was identified as the causative agent of the aseptic meningitis outbreak in Turkey.
  • This outbreak highlights the importance of surveillance for enteroviral meningitis.

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