Department of Defense West Nile virus surveillance in 2002.
The Department of Defense (DoD) has engaged in West Nile virus (WNV) surveillance and response since 1999. In 2002, the three Services continued their cooperative, multidisciplinary approach to the WNV outbreak. Activities included a doubling of mosquito surveillance and vector control responses, extension of and doubling of bird and nonhuman mammal surveillance to all four continental United States regions, expanded diagnostic testing by DoD laboratories, and installation environmental clean up and personnel protection campaigns. Medical treatment facilities conducted passive surveillance and reported possible cases in DoD health care beneficiaries. Efforts were coordinated through active communication within installations, with commands, and with surrounding communities. Undertaken activities complemented each other to maximize surveillance coverage. The surveillance detected WNV on 44 DoD installations. It led directly to vector control and prevention activities, and there were no confirmed cases of WNV reported in the DoD force. This multi-Service effort is a surveillance template for future outbreaks that threaten DoD force health.
DoD-Global Emerging Infections Surveillance, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, Silver Spring, MD 20910-7500, USA.
Clara Josting
CJ
Witt
Mary
M
Brundage
Charles
C
Cannon
Kenneth
K
Cox
Tamara E
TE
Clements
Edwin D
ED
Cooper
Yevgeniy
Y
Elbert
George V
GV
Ludwig
Joseph A
JA
Mangiafico
Mark
M
Malakooti
Mellissa K
MK
Miller
Steve D
SD
Osborn
Ben
B
Pagac
Lenoir P
LP
Ross
Larry J
LJ
Shelton
Alexandra
A
Spring
Patrick
P
Kelley
D000818:Animals; D006801:Humans; D008887:Military Medicine; D011159:Population Surveillance / Q000379:methods*; D014481:United States / Q000453:epidemiology; D014901:West Nile Fever / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D014902:West Nile virus / Q000302:isolation & purification*