title: A patient with asymptomatic severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) and antigenemia from the 2003-2004 community outbreak of SARS in Guangzhou, China.
abstract: An asymptomatic case of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) occurred early in 2004, during a community outbreak of SARS in Guangzhou, China. This was the first time that a case of asymptomatic SARS was noted in an individual with antigenemia and seroconversion. The asymptomatic case patient and the second index case patient with SARS in the 2003-2004 outbreak both worked in the same restaurant, where they served palm civets, which were found to carry SARS-associated coronaviruses. Epidemiological information and laboratory findings suggested that the findings for the patient with asymptomatic infection, together with the findings from previously reported serological analyses of handlers of wild animals and the 4 index case patients from the 2004 community outbreak, reflected a likely intermediate phase of animal-to-human transmission of infection, rather than a case of human-to-human transmission. This intermediate phase may be a critical stage for virus evolution and disease prevention.
authors.affiliation: Center of Laboratory, Zhujiang Hospital, Southern Medical University, People's Republic of China.
authors.forename: Xiao-yan
authors.initials: XY
authors.lastname: Che
authors.forename: Biao
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Di
authors.forename: Guo-ping
authors.initials: GP
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.forename: Ya-di
authors.initials: YD
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Li-wen
authors.initials: LW
authors.lastname: Qiu
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Hao
authors.forename: Ming
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Peng-zhe
authors.initials: PZ
authors.lastname: Qin
authors.forename: Yu-fei
authors.initials: YF
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Kwok-hong
authors.initials: KH
authors.lastname: Chan
authors.forename: Vincent C C
authors.initials: VC
authors.lastname: Cheng
authors.forename: Kwok-yung
authors.initials: KY
authors.lastname: Yuen
mesh_terms: D000956:Antigens, Viral / Q000097:blood*; D002681:China / Q000453:epidemiology; D004196:Disease Outbreaks; D006801:Humans; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012698:Serologic Tests; D045169:Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000276:immunology* / Q000635:transmission; D045949:Viverridae / Q000821:virology
chemical_list: D000956:Antigens, Viral