Title |
Viral aetiologies of acute encephalitis in a hospital-based South Asian population
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Published in |
BMC Infectious Diseases, April 2017
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DOI | 10.1186/s12879-017-2403-z |
Pubmed ID | |
Authors |
Janarthani Lohitharajah, Neelika Malavige, Carukshi Arambepola, Jithangi Wanigasinghe, Ranjanie Gamage, Padma Gunaratne, Pyara Ratnayake, Thashi Chang |
Abstract |
The aetiological spectrum of acute encephalitis shows inter- and intra-geographical variations. We aimed to identify the viruses that cause infectious encephalitis in Sri Lanka, which represents a South Asian population. A cross-sectional study was conducted among 99 patients with encephalitis/meningoencephalitis admitted to two tertiary-care hospitals in Colombo. Cerebrospinal fluid and serum were tested for conventional and emerging encephalitogenic viruses. Specific nucleic acid amplification and antibody assays were used to identify viruses. Plaque reduction neutralization test was done to confirm the diagnosis of West Nile virus (WNV). Patients' age ranged from 1 month to 73 years (mean = 24.91; SD = 21.33) with a male:female ratio of 1.75:1. A viral aetiology was identified in only 27.3%. These included dengue virus (40.7%), Japanese encephalitis virus (25.9%), varicella zoster virus, WNV and probable Epstein Barr virus (11.1% each). None were positive for herpes simplex viruses or cytomegalovirus. Screening for bacterial aetiologies was negative for all patients. There were no distinguishable clinical or laboratory findings between the different viral aetiologies. The case fatality rate was 7%, which was higher among patients with an identified viral aetiology. A viral aetiology was identified in only about a quarter of patients with encephalitis. Dengue virus accounted for the majority. |
X Demographics
Geographical breakdown
Country | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Sri Lanka | 1 | 33% |
Unknown | 2 | 67% |
Demographic breakdown
Type | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Members of the public | 2 | 67% |
Scientists | 1 | 33% |
Mendeley readers
Geographical breakdown
Country | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Unknown | 40 | 100% |
Demographic breakdown
Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Student > Bachelor | 6 | 15% |
Student > Master | 6 | 15% |
Student > Doctoral Student | 5 | 13% |
Student > Ph. D. Student | 3 | 8% |
Researcher | 2 | 5% |
Other | 6 | 15% |
Unknown | 12 | 30% |
Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Medicine and Dentistry | 11 | 28% |
Immunology and Microbiology | 4 | 10% |
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology | 3 | 8% |
Agricultural and Biological Sciences | 2 | 5% |
Neuroscience | 2 | 5% |
Other | 6 | 15% |
Unknown | 12 | 30% |