title: The aftermath of the Western Australian melioidosis outbreak.
abstract: Melioidosis became a notifiable disease in Western Australia (WA) 2 years after the West Kimberley melioidosis outbreak. Two cases of melioidosis caused by the outbreak genotype of Burkholderia pseudomallei (National Collection of Type Cultures [NCTC] 13177) occurred in 1998 and 1999 in persons who visited the outbreak location at the time. No other infections caused by the outbreak strain have been recorded in WA since that time, despite an average of four culture-positive cases per year. Sporadic cases of melioidosis often follow tropical storms and cyclones during summer, and they have been detected outside the endemic area when cyclones travel far inland. In 2007, environmental isolates resembling NCTC 13177 were found 500 km east of the outbreak location after unusually severe weather. Recent whole-genome analysis places NCTC 13177 genetically close to other Australian isolates. Additional biogeographic and ecological studies are needed to establish the relative importance of environmental cofactors in disease pathogenesis.
authors.affiliation: Division of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, PathWest Laboratory Medicine, Nedlands, WA 6009, Australia. tim.inglis@health.wa.gov.au
authors.forename: Timothy J J
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Inglis
authors.forename: Lyn
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: O'Reilly
authors.forename: Adam J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Merritt
authors.forename: Avram
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Levy
authors.forename: Christopher H
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Heath
authors.forename: Christopher
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Heath
mesh_terms: D016957:Burkholderia pseudomallei / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000472:pathogenicity*; D002980:Climate; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics; D003710:Demography / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D018563:Disease Notification; D004196:Disease Outbreaks; D016521:Electrophoresis, Gel, Pulsed-Field; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D062665:Epidemiological Monitoring; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D008554:Melioidosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D012698:Serologic Tests; D014195:Travel; D014881:Water Supply; D014904:Western Australia / Q000453:epidemiology
chemical_list: D004269:DNA, Bacterial