1/6. Vertical transmission of fatal Rift Valley fever in a newborn. Rift Valley Fever (RVF) is a viral disease transmitted to humans by mosquito bite and contact with animals or their infected tissues. Other modes of transmission include aerosol inhalation and possibly ingestion of raw milk from infected animals. We present a 5-day-old neonate with fatal RVF. Onset of the infant's illness on the 2nd day of life combined with positive RVF-IgM and serological evidence of maternal disease supports vertical transmission. ( info) |
2/6. rift valley fever virus infections in egypt: Pathological and virological findings in man. Ten strains of rift valley fever virus were isolated from serum samples from acute human cases collected during an epidemic of undifferentiated febrile illness. Post-mortem samples were obtained from two fatal infections. Severe liver necrosis, interstitial pneumonia and myocardial degeneration were seen. rift valley fever virus was isolated from post-mortem samples of liver, cerebro-spinal, pericardial and pleural fluid and from a throat swab. The virus was also isolated from nasopharyngeal washings suggesting that direct transmission from man to man may be possible. ( info) |
3/6. Rift Valley fever ocular manifestations: observations during the 1977 epidemic in egypt. Ocular manifestations resulting from Rift Valley fever (RVF) virus infection were studied during an extensive RVF epidemic in egypt during 1977. Colour photography and fluorescein angiography of 7 serologically diagnosed patients showed the commonest manifestations to be macular, paramacular, and/or extramacular retinal lesions, often occurring bilaterally. Haemorrhage and oedema were frequently associated with the lesions, and vasculitis, retinitis, and vascular occlusion were also observed. patients were monitored during a 6-month convalescence, and, though resorption of the lesions occurred, approximately half the patients experienced permanent loss of visual acuity. Ocular disease was one form of the clinical spectrum of RVF; acute febrile, encephalitic, and fatal haemorrhagic RVF illnesses were also observed during the epidemic. ( info) |
| The demonstration of serological conversion to Rift Valley fever (RVF) virus in paired acute and convalescent sera established RVF as the cause of two cases of retinitis seen during the 1977 RVF epidemic in egypt. Colour photography of the retina revealed macular, paramacular and extramacular exudate-like lesions with associated haemorrage and oedema. One patient has not recovered central vision during a six-month convalescence. An ongoing study of a larger group of RVF patients with ocular disease revealed that the findings presented for these two cases represented the types of lesions most frequently encountered during the epidemic. ( info) |
5/6. Rift Valley fever retinitis. A 57-year-old Dutch woman, who had lived and worked in tanzania for 26 years, developed serious, progressive bilateral retinitis after suffering from a fever of unknown origin. Fundus abnormalities in both eyes suggested that the woman had been infected with rift valley fever virus. Serologic studies confirmed this suspicion. White macular lesions accompanied to extensive vasculitis appear to be specific for Rift Valley fever retinitis. ( info) |
| Laboratory-acquired infections encountered between 1963 and 1977 among personnel of the Virus research Laboratory, Ibadan, nigeria, are reported. Two cases of chikungunya infection occurred and one each with Dugbe, Wesselsbron, and dengue viruses. In each case, virus was isolated or development of antibody demonstrated. Among virus and two each to chikungunya and Rift Valley fever viruses, without experiencing any clinically recognized disease. ( info) |