TY - JOUR
T1 - A national study of US bird banders for evidence of avian influenza virus infections
AU - Gray, Gregory C.
AU - Ferguson, Dwight D.
AU - Lowther, Peter E.
AU - Heil, Gary L.
AU - Friary, John A.
N1 - Funding Information:
Supported by grants NIAID HHSN266200700007C/DMID 09-0024 , NIAID R01 AI068803 , and grants from the US Department of Defense Global Emerging Infections Surveillance and Response Program (Drs. Gray PI). This work has been funded in part with federal funds from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health. Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the NIH. We thank the following individuals for their technical support of this study: Clinton McDaniel and Robin Derby of the University of Florida's Emerging Pathogens Institute; and Sharon Setterquist, Mark Lebeck, Troy McCarthy, Brianna Dannen, and Ben Henkle of the University of Iowa's Center for Emerging Infectious Diseases. The authors are grateful to Dr. Bruce Peterjohn, Chief at the US Geological Survey Bird Banding Laboratory, Linda Tossing at the Inland Bird Banding Association, Dr. Cheryl Trine Editor at the Ornithological Newsletter and Dr. Dale Garner, Chief, Wildlife Bureau Department of Natural Resources, and Mr. Peter Dring for their advice and assistance with recruitment. Additionally, we thank the following organizations for advertising the study: Bird Banding Laboratory, Inland Bird Banding Association, The Ornithological Newsletter, Audubon Newswire, Western Bird Banding Association, BirdNet listserv, Department of Natural Resources, US Fish and Wildlife Service's Migratory Bird Program, Flyways Council, Coastal Virginia Wildlife Observatory, and the Whitefish Point Bird Observatory. The authors thank the following persons for freely sharing influenza viruses: Dr. Richard Webby of St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN; Dr. Alexander Klimov from the CDC, Atlanta, GA; and Dennis Senne of the National Veterinary Services Laboratories, Ames, IA.
PY - 2011/6
Y1 - 2011/6
N2 - Background: Previously we have found that Midwestern US wildlife biologists, poultry farmers, veterinarians, and duck hunters have had evidence of avian influenza virus infections (AIVs). Objectives: We sought to evaluate a national sample of US bird banders for previous evidence of AIV infection. Study design: Controlled, cross-sectional serological survey. Results: In 2009 and 2010 we enrolled 157 registered bird banders from 40 US states and compared their enrollment data and serological results with 78 adult age-group matched controls from Iowa. On average, the bird banders had 15 years of wild bird exposure, banded 20 days per year, worked chiefly in 1 of the 4 North American flyways, and banded 300 individual birds of 5 different species per season. While handling birds, only 15% of banders reported wearing gloves. Three bird banders and 1 control had evidence of previous infection (1 AIV each) with A/BWTE/Ohio/07/495762-6(H7N3), A/Ty/MN/38391-6/95(H9N2) or A/CK/NJ/7290-2/95(H11N3) by microneutralization assay. There was no evidence of previous infection with a representative sample of H4, H5, H6, H8, or H10 AIVs. Participants were followed for influenza-like-illness for a median of 7 months and 4 (3 bird banders) submitted self-collected eye, nasal, and throat influenza-like-illness swab specimens, 1 of which collected in November of 2009, yielded a pandemic H1N1 influenza A virus. Conclusion: Despite reports of conjunctivitis and upper respiratory symptoms while bird banding, we found sparse evidence that US bird banders had infections with AIVs.
AB - Background: Previously we have found that Midwestern US wildlife biologists, poultry farmers, veterinarians, and duck hunters have had evidence of avian influenza virus infections (AIVs). Objectives: We sought to evaluate a national sample of US bird banders for previous evidence of AIV infection. Study design: Controlled, cross-sectional serological survey. Results: In 2009 and 2010 we enrolled 157 registered bird banders from 40 US states and compared their enrollment data and serological results with 78 adult age-group matched controls from Iowa. On average, the bird banders had 15 years of wild bird exposure, banded 20 days per year, worked chiefly in 1 of the 4 North American flyways, and banded 300 individual birds of 5 different species per season. While handling birds, only 15% of banders reported wearing gloves. Three bird banders and 1 control had evidence of previous infection (1 AIV each) with A/BWTE/Ohio/07/495762-6(H7N3), A/Ty/MN/38391-6/95(H9N2) or A/CK/NJ/7290-2/95(H11N3) by microneutralization assay. There was no evidence of previous infection with a representative sample of H4, H5, H6, H8, or H10 AIVs. Participants were followed for influenza-like-illness for a median of 7 months and 4 (3 bird banders) submitted self-collected eye, nasal, and throat influenza-like-illness swab specimens, 1 of which collected in November of 2009, yielded a pandemic H1N1 influenza A virus. Conclusion: Despite reports of conjunctivitis and upper respiratory symptoms while bird banding, we found sparse evidence that US bird banders had infections with AIVs.
KW - Agriculture
KW - Cohort studies
KW - Communicable diseases, emerging
KW - Influenza
KW - Influenza A virus, avian
KW - Occupational exposure
KW - Seroepidemiologic studies
KW - Zoonoses
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U2 - 10.1016/j.jcv.2011.03.011
DO - 10.1016/j.jcv.2011.03.011
M3 - Article
C2 - 21530384
AN - SCOPUS:79956322217
SN - 1386-6532
VL - 51
SP - 132
EP - 135
JO - Journal of Clinical Virology
JF - Journal of Clinical Virology
IS - 2
ER -