Viral conjunctivitis with special reference to adenovirus type 37 and enterovirus 70 infection

The clinical and etiological findings in 727 patients with viral conjunctivitis treated from January 1982 through December 1984 at Aoki Eye Clinic in Sapporo, Japan, were presented. The age of the patients ranged from 11 days to 88 years, and the monthly incidences of the disease from 18 to 131 cases, with a clustering in the summer season. The etiological diagnosis was established in 399 (54.9%) of the 727 patients: adenovirus (Ad) 3 in 45 cases; Ad4 in 98 cases; Ad8 in 57 cases; Ad19 in 23 cases; Ad37 in 51 cases; untyped Ad in 33 cases; enterovirus (EV) 70 in 60 cases; herpes simplex virus type I in 24 cases and varicella-zoster virus in 4 cases. The clinical pictures of adenovirus 37 conjunctivitis were generally similar to those of adenovirus 8 conjunctivitis, and subconjunctival hemorrhage was more frequently seen in cases of EV70 conjunctivitis. EV70 cases showed nosocomial infection. In addition to Ad8, Ad37 seems to play an important role as a causative agent of epidemic keratoconjunctivitis in Japan.