-Case Reports-

Coxsackievirus B5 Aseptic Meningitis in Infants in Chiba Prefecture, Japan, in 2016

Kanae Tsuno¹, Chiharu Miyatake¹, Haruna Nishijima², Chiemi Hotta², Tomoko Ogawa² and Takeshi Asano¹

¹Department of Pediatrics, Nippon Medical School Chiba Hokusoh Hospital, Chiba, Japan
²Division of Virology, Chiba Prefectural Institute of Public Health, Chiba, Japan

Background: Infantile aseptic meningitis is a rare infection of the central nervous system. Coxsackievirus B5 (CVB5) is an enterovirus that is sometimes associated with aseptic meningitis and encephalitis.
Case presentation: We report on three isolated infants with aseptic meningitis caused by CVB5 in the spring and summer of 2016 with nearly identical 404-bp CVB5 Viral Capsid Protein 1 (VP1) sequences. In addition, viral analysis of sewage samples from Chiba Prefecture in 2016 showed similar 404-bp CVB5 VP1 sequences from May to September 2016.
Conclusion: These results indicate that viral screening of sewage water may help detect occult outbreaks of viral infection, particularly for enterovirus strains.

J Nippon Med Sch 2018; 85: 187-190

Keywords
infant, meningitis, coxsackie B5, sewage sample

Correspondence to
Takeshi Asano, MD, Department of Pediatrics, Nippon Medical School Chiba Hokusoh Hospital, 1715 Kamagari, Inzai, Chiba 270-1694, Japan
july1364@nms.ac.jp

Received, January 8, 2018
Accepted, February 5, 2018