Using data from the ArboNET system of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, we evaluated the short-term effects of Hurricane Katrina on the reported incidence of human West Nile neuroinvasive disease (WNND) and Saint Louis encephalitis (SLE) in Louisiana and Mississippi using the reported week of onset and the year (2003-2005).
This invading non-indigenous species should be monitored closely since it is a known vector for several viral pathogens including those responsible for West Nile fever, Saint Louis encephalitis, Japanese encephalitis and eastern equine encephalitis.
Laboratory diagnosis of ILHV infection may be difficult, unless a virus isolate can be obtained, because of the cross-reactivity in serologic assays to other flaviviruses that circulate in the same area, such as Rocio, dengue, yellow fever, and Saint Louis encephalitis viruses.
Endpoints for 90% plaque reduction neutralization tests for patients with acute West Nile virus (WNV) infection, Gonaives, Haiti, 2004 * Age Sex DEN-1 DEN-2 DEN-3 DEN-4 SLE WNV 13 y Male <100 <100 <100 <100 <100 200 <1 y Female <100 <100 <100 <100 <100 800 DEN, dengue; SLE, Saint Louis encephalitis virus.
To assess sensitivity, viral RNA extracted from infected cell supernatants (adenovirus, West Nile virus, Saint Louis encephalitis virus, respiratory syncytial virus, enterovirus, SARS-CoV, and influenza virus) was quantitated by real-time PCR, serially diluted, and subjected to analysis with template concentrations ranging from 10 to 1,000,000 copies/assay.
Overall, 4% of the dog sera we tested contained neutralizing EVEV antibodies, a rate similar to the seroprevalence for the major human pathogenic arboviruses (EVEV, EEEV, Saint Louis encephalitis virus, Western equine encephalitis virus) in Florida detected in >2,500 sera from wildlife in 38 of the state's 67 counties from 1965 to 1974 (24).
