title: SARS transmission in Vietnam outside of the health-care setting.
abstract: To evaluate the risk of transmission of SARS coronavirus outside of the health-care setting, close household and community contacts of laboratory-confirmed SARS cases were identified and followed up for clinical and laboratory evidence of SARS infection. Individual- and household-level risk factors for transmission were investigated. Nine persons with serological evidence of SARS infection were identified amongst 212 close contacts of 45 laboratory-confirmed SARS cases (secondary attack rate 4.2%, 95% CI 1.5-7). In this cohort, the average number of secondary infections caused by a single infectious case was 0.2. Two community contacts with laboratory evidence of SARS coronavirus infection had mild or sub-clinical infection, representing 3% (2/65) of Vietnamese SARS cases. There was no evidence of transmission of infection before symptom onset. Physically caring for a symptomatic laboratory-confirmed SARS case was the only independent risk factor for SARS transmission (OR 5.78, 95% CI 1.23-24.24).
authors.affiliation: National Institute of Hygiene and Epidemiology, Hanoi, Vietnam.
authors.forename: P A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Tuan
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Horby
authors.forename: P N
authors.initials: PN
authors.lastname: Dinh
authors.forename: L T Q
authors.initials: LT
authors.lastname: Mai
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Zambon
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Shah
authors.forename: V Q
authors.initials: VQ
authors.lastname: Huy
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bloom
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Gopal
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Comer
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Plant
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004196:Disease Outbreaks; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012307:Risk Factors; D045169:Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology / Q000635:transmission*; D014744:Vietnam / Q000453:epidemiology