Donor-derived West Nile virus infection in solid organ transplant recipients: report of four additional cases and review of clinical, diagnostic, and therapeutic features.
We describe four solid-organ transplant recipients with donor-derived West Nile virus (WNV) infection (encephalitis 3, asymptomatic 1) from a common donor residing in a region of increased WNV activity. All four transplant recipients had molecular evidence of WNV infection in their serum and/or cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) testing. Serum from the organ donor was positive for WNV IgM but negative for WNV RNA, whereas his lymph node and spleen tissues tested positive for WNV by RT-PCR. Combination therapy included intravenous immunoglobulin (4 cases), interferon (3 cases), fresh frozen plasma with WNV IgG (2 cases), and ribavirin (1 case). Two of the four transplant recipients survived.Review of the 20 published cases of organ-derived WNV infection found that this infection is associated with a high incidence of neuroinvasive disease (70%) and severe morbidity and mortality (30%). Median time to onset of symptomatic WNV infection was 13 days after transplantation (range 5-37 days). Initial unexplained fever unresponsive to antibiotic therapy followed by rapid onset of neurologic deficits was the most common clinical presentation. Confirmation of infection was made by testing serum and CSF for both WNV RNA by RT-PCR and WNV IgM by serological assays. Treatment usually included supportive care, reduction of immunosuppression, and frequent intravenous immunoglobulin. The often negative results for WNV by current RT-PCR and serological assays and the absence of clinical signs of acute infection in donors contribute to the sporadic occurrence of donor-derived WNV infection. Potential organ donors should be assessed for unexplained fever and neurological symptoms, particularly if they reside in areas of increased WNV activity.
1 UCLA Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA. 2 Mayo Clinic, Phoenix, AZ. 3 U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Fort Collins, CO. 4 Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CA. 5 Mendez National Institute of Transplantation, Los Angeles, CA. 6 One Legacy, Los Angeles, CA. 7 Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, Los Angeles, CA. 8 Arizona Department of Health Services, Phoenix, AZ. 9 California Department of Public Health, Richmond, CA. 10 U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA. 11 West Nile Virus Transplant-Associated Transmission Investigation Team: Dianna M. Blau, Julu Bhatnagar, Dominique Rollin, Matthew Kuehnert, Sherif R. Zaki (U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA); J. Erin Staples, Marc Fischer (U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Fort Collins, CO). 12 Address correspondence to: Drew J. Winston, M.D., Room 42-121 CHS, Department of Medicine, UCLA Center for the Health Sciences, Los Angeles, CA, 90095.
Drew J
DJ
Winston
Holenarasipur R
HR
Vikram
Ingrid B
IB
Rabe
Gundeep
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Dhillon
David
D
Mulligan
Johnny C
JC
Hong
Ronald W
RW
Busuttil
Marek J
MJ
Nowicki
Thomas
T
Mone
Rachel
R
Civen
Selam A
SA
Tecle
Kavita K
KK
Trivedi
Susan N
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Hocevar
D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000097:blood; D006801:Humans; D007075:Immunoglobulin M / Q000276:immunology; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D016030:Kidney Transplantation / Q000009:adverse effects; D016031:Liver Transplantation / Q000009:adverse effects; D016040:Lung Transplantation / Q000009:adverse effects; D008198:Lymph Nodes / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016377:Organ Transplantation / Q000009:adverse effects*; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000097:blood; D013154:Spleen / Q000473:pathology; D014019:Tissue Donors; D014901:West Nile Fever / Q000097:blood / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid / Q000150:complications* / Q000628:therapy; D014902:West Nile virus
D000914:Antibodies, Viral; D007075:Immunoglobulin M; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents; D012367:RNA, Viral