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Identification of pathogens causing fever in returning travelers using next-generation sequencing.
Kenji Gotoh1,2, Nobuyuki Hamada3, Takahito Kashiwagi3,4
1Department of Infection Control and Prevention, Kurume University School of Medicine, 67 Asahi-Machi, Kurume, Fukuoka, 830-0011, Japan. gotou_kenji@kurume-u.ac.jp.
Tropical Medicine and Health
|June 12, 2025
Summary
Common coronaviruses like human coronavirus OC43 (HCoV-OC43) frequently caused fever in travelers before COVID-19. Identifying these pathogens is key for managing undiagnosed febrile illnesses in returning travelers.
Area of Science:
- Infectious Diseases
- Virology
- Genomics
Background:
- Fever in returning travelers necessitates considering local infectious diseases.
- Undiagnosed febrile illnesses pose challenges in clinical management and emerging disease detection.
Purpose of the Study:
- Identify pathogens in febrile travelers with undiagnosed illnesses.
- Investigate causes of fever in patients lacking specific clinical features.
Main Methods:
- Next-generation sequencing (NGS) was used on samples from 7 travelers with undiagnosed fever.
- Virus isolation was performed on 2 samples.
- Conventional RT-PCR confirmed findings.
Main Results:
- Human coronavirus OC43 (HCoV-OC43) genes were detected in all 8 samples via NGS.
- Coinfections with herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) and mumps virus were observed in some samples.
- HCoV-OC43 genetic fragments were confirmed by RT-PCR.
Conclusions:
- Common coronaviruses, such as HCoV-OC43, were significant causes of fever in travelers pre-COVID-19.
- Outpatient follow-up is a feasible management strategy for stable patients after excluding tropical diseases.
