%0 Journal Article %J Euro Surveill %D 2023 %T Effect of neuraminidase inhibitor (oseltamivir) treatment on outcome of hospitalised influenza patients, surveillance data from 11 EU countries, 2010 to 2020. %A Adlhoch, Cornelia %A Concepción Delgado-Sanz %A AnnaSara Carnahan %A Larrauri, Amparo %A Odette Popovici %A Nathalie Bossuyt %A Isabelle Thomas %A Jan Kynčl %A Pavel Slezak %A Mia Brytting %A Raquel Guiomar %A Monika Redlberger-Fritz %A Jackie Maistre Melillo %A Tanya Melillo %A Arianne B van Gageldonk-Lafeber %A Sierk D Marbus %A O'Donnell, Joan %A Domegan, Lisa %A Joana Gomes Dias %A Sonja J Olsen %K Aged %K Antiviral Agents %K Enzyme Inhibitors %K Guanidines %K Hospital Mortality %K Humans %K Influenza, Human %K Neuraminidase %K Oseltamivir %K Treatment Outcome %K Zanamivir %X

BackgroundTimely treatment with neuraminidase inhibitors (NAI) can reduce severe outcomes in influenza patients.AimWe assessed the impact of antiviral treatment on in-hospital deaths of laboratory-confirmed influenza patients in 11 European Union countries from 2010/11 to 2019/20.MethodsCase-based surveillance data from hospitalised patients with known age, sex, outcome, ward, vaccination status, timing of antiviral treatment, and hospitalisation were obtained. A mixed effect logistic regression model using country as random intercept was applied to estimate the adjusted odds ratio (aOR) for in-hospital death in patients treated with NAIs vs not treated.ResultsOf 19,937 patients, 31% received NAIs within 48 hours of hospital admission. Older age (60-79 years aOR 3.0, 95% CI: 2.4-3.8; 80 years 8.3 (6.6-10.5)) and intensive care unit admission (3.8, 95% CI: 3.4-4.2) increased risk of dying, while early hospital admission after symptom onset decreased risk (aOR 0.91, 95% CI: 0.90-0.93). NAI treatment initiation within 48 hours and up to 7 days reduced risk of dying (0-48 hours aOR 0.51, 95% CI: 0.45-0.59; 3-4 days 0.59 (0.51-0.67); 5-7 days 0.64 (0.56-0.74)), in particular in patients 40 years and older (e.g. treatment within 48 hours: 40-59 years aOR 0.43, 95% CI: 0.28-0.66; 60-79 years 0.50 (0.39-0.63); ≥80 years 0.51 (0.42-0.63)).ConclusionNAI treatment given within 48 hours and possibly up to 7 days after symptom onset reduced risk of in-hospital death. NAI treatment should be considered in older patients to prevent severe outcomes.

%B Euro Surveill %V 28 %8 2023 Jan %G eng %N 4 %R 10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2023.28.4.2200340 %0 Journal Article %J Eurosurveillance %D 2023 %T Influenza versus other respiratory viruses – assessing severity among hospitalised children, Belgium, 2011 to 2020. %A Natalie Fischer %A S Moreels %A Nicolas Dauby %A Marijke Reynders %A Evelyn Petit %A Gerard, Michèle %A Lacor, Patrick %A Siel Daelemans %A Bénédicte Lissoir %A Xavier Holemans %A Koen Magerman %A Jouck, Door %A Marc Bourgeois %A Bénédicte Delaere %A Sophie Quoilin %A Steven Van Gucht %A Isabelle Thomas %A Nathalie Bossuyt %A Cyril Barbezange %B Eurosurveillance %V 28 %8 Aug-07-2024 %G eng %N 29 %R 10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2023.28.29.2300056 %0 Journal Article %J Archives of Public Health %D 2023 %T Non-response bias in the analysis of the association between mental health and the urban environment: a cross-sectional study in Brussels, Belgium %A Madeleine Guyot %A Ingrid Pelgrims %A Raf Aerts %A Keune, Hans %A Roy Remmen %A Eva M De Clercq %A Isabelle Thomas %A Sophie O. Vanwambeke, %K Brussels %K Mental health %K Non-response %K Urban Environment %X

Background

This paper aims at analysing the impact of partial non-response in the association between urban environment and mental health in Brussels. The potential threats of the partial non-response are biases in survey estimates and statistics. The effect of non-response on statistical associations is often overlooked and evidence in the research literature is lacking.

Methods

Data from the Belgian Health Interview Survey 2008 and 2013 were used. The association between non-response and potential determinants was explored through logistic regressions.

Results

Participants with low income, low educational levels, lower or higher age or in households with children were less likely to respond. When adjusting for socio-economic variables, non-response was higher in areas which are less vegetated, more polluted or more urbanised. Because the determinants of non-response and depressive disorders were similar, it is reasonable to assume that there will be more people with mental health problems among the non-respondents. And because more non-responses were found in low vegetation areas, the protective association between green spaces and mental health may be underestimated.

Conclusion

Our capacity to measure the association between the urban environment and health is affected by non-response in surveys. The non-random spatial and socio-economic distribution of this bias affects the research findings.

%B Archives of Public Health %V 81 %8 Jan-12-2023 %G eng %N 1 %R 10.1186/s13690-023-01118-y %0 Journal Article %J Influenza Other Respir Viruses %D 2023 %T Seasonal and inter-seasonal RSV activity in the European Region during the COVID-19 pandemic from autumn 2020 to summer 2022. %A Margaux M I Meslé %A Sinnathamby, Mary %A Piers Mook %A Richard Pebody %A Anissa Lakhani %A Maria Zambon %A Odette Popovici %A Mihaela Lazar %A Ljubović, Amela Dedeić %A Vukmir, Nina Rodić %A Altaş, Ayşe Başak %A Emine Avci %A Katarzyna Łuniewska %A Karol Szymański %A Greta Gargasiene %A Svajune Muralyte %A Džiugytė, Aušra %A Graziella Zahra %A Ana Rita Gonçalves %A Tania Spedaliero %A Fournier, Guillaume %A Daniel Alvarez-Vaca %A Petrović, Goranka %A Irena Tabain %A Katarina Prosenc %A Maja Socan %A Jelena Protic %A Dragana Dimitrijevic %A Alina Druc %A Mariana Apostol %A Kate Karolina Kalasnikova %A Sergejs Nikisins %A Janine Reiche %A Cai, Wei %A Adam Meijer %A Anne Teirlinck %A Larrauri, Amparo %A Inmaculada Casas %A Vincent Enouf %A Sophie Vaux %A Lomholt, Frederikke Kristensen %A Ramona Trebbien %A Helena Jirincova %A Helena Sebestova %A Mónika Rózsa %A Zsuzsanna Molnár %A Gudrun Aspelund %A Gudrun Erna Baldvinsdottir %A Simon Cottrell %A Moore, Catherine %A Kossyvakis, Athanasios %A Mellou, Kassiani %A Olga Sadikova %A Johanna Kristina Tamm %A Nathalie Bossuyt %A Isabelle Thomas %A Edita Staroňová %A Lyudmila Kudasheva %A Boris Pleshkov %A Niina Ikonen %A Otto Helve %A Emma Dickson %A Tanya Curran %A Kseniya Komissarova %A Kirill Stolyarov %A Veronika Vysotskaya %A Natallia Shmialiova %A Rakočević, Božidarka %A Danijela Vujošević %A Romella Abovyan %A Shushan Sargsyan %A Khatuna Zakhashvili %A Ann Machablishvili %A Oksana Koshalko %A Iryna Demchyshyna %A Michal Mandelboim %A Aharona Glatman-Freedman %A Rory Gunson %A Karanwal, Shivani %A Raquel Guiomar %A Ana Paula Rodrigues %A Charlene Bennett %A Domegan, Lisa %A Arijana Kalaveshi %A Jakupi, Xhevat %A Ovliyakulova, Gurbangul %A Neli Korsun %A Nadezhda Vladimirova %K COVID-19 %K Humans %K Pandemics %K Population Surveillance %K Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infections %K Respiratory Syncytial Virus, Human %K SARS-CoV-2 %K Seasons %X

BACKGROUND: The emergence of the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in early 2020 and subsequent implementation of public health and social measures (PHSM) disrupted the epidemiology of respiratory viruses. This work describes the epidemiology of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) observed during two winter seasons (weeks 40-20) and inter-seasonal periods (weeks 21-39) during the pandemic between October 2020 and September 2022.

METHODS: Using data submitted to The European Surveillance System (TESSy) by countries or territories in the World Health Organization (WHO) European Region between weeks 40/2020 and 39/2022, we aggregated country-specific weekly RSV counts of sentinel, non-sentinel and Severe Acute Respiratory Infection (SARI) surveillance specimens and calculated percentage positivity. Results for both 2020/21 and 2021/22 seasons and inter-seasons were compared with pre-pandemic 2016/17 to 2019/20 seasons and inter-seasons.

RESULTS: Although more specimens were tested than in pre-COVID-19 pandemic seasons, very few RSV detections were reported during the 2020/21 season in all surveillance systems. During the 2021 inter-season, a gradual increase in detections was observed in all systems. In 2021/22, all systems saw early peaks of RSV infection, and during the 2022 inter-seasonal period, patterns of detections were closer to those seen before the COVID-19 pandemic.

CONCLUSION: RSV surveillance continued throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, with an initial reduction in transmission, followed by very high and out-of-season RSV circulation (summer 2021) and then an early start of the 2021/22 season. As of the 2022/23 season, RSV circulation had not yet normalised.

%B Influenza Other Respir Viruses %V 17 %8 2023 Nov %G eng %N 11 %R 10.1111/irv.13219 %0 Report %D 2023 %T Surveillance des infections à influenza. Rapport épidémiologique saison 2019-2020 %A Nathalie Bossuyt %A Natalia Bustos Sierra %A Kris Doggen %A Robrecht De Schreye %A Sébastien Fierens %A S Moreels %A M. Vermeulen %A B. Vos %A Cyril Barbezange %A François Dufrasne %A Sarah Denayer %A Isabelle Thomas %K INFLUENZA %X

La saison 2019-2020 a connu une épidémie de grippe d’une durée de 8 semaines et d'intensité modérée. Le pic de l'activité grippale est survenu au cours de la semaine 6 de 2020 (du 27 janvier au 02 février 2020). On n'a pas observé d'infections plus sévères (avec complications) qu'au cours d'une saison grippale moyenne.

Au cours de la première semaine de mars 2020 (semaine 10), les premières infections par le virus du SARS-CoV-2 ont été détectées en Belgique[1]. La propagation de ce nouveau virus a provoqué un deuxième pic de consultations pour des symptômes grippaux chez les généralistes au cours de la semaine 10 (du 2 au 8 mars 2020).

Les mesures de distance strictes qui sont entrées en vigueur à partir du 14 mars 2020 et la stratégie de dépistage du COVID-19 ont eu un impact négatif sur le fonctionnement de la surveillance de la grippe, en raison de la surcharge des prestataires de soins de santé, des consultations à distance,…

 

[1] Le patient rapatrié de Wuhan le 04/02/2020 n’est plus pris en compte.

%I Sciensano %C Bruxelles, Belgique %P 32 %8 28/07/2023 %G eng %M D/2022.14.440/44 %0 Report %D 2023 %T Surveillance van griepinfecties. Epidemiologische rapport seizoen 2019-2020 %A Nathalie Bossuyt %A Natalia Bustos Sierra %A Kris Doggen %A Robrecht De Schreye %A Sébastien Fierens %A S Moreels %A M. Vermeulen %A B. Vos %A Cyril Barbezange %A François Dufrasne %A Sarah Denayer %A Isabelle Thomas %K INFLUENZA %X

Het seizoen van 2019-2020 kende een 8 weken durende influenza epidemie van matige intensiteit. De piek in de influenza activiteit viel tijdens week 6 van 2020 (27 januari t/m 02 februari 2020). Er werden niet meer ernstige (verwikkelde) infecties gezien dan in een gemiddeld griepseizoen.


Tijdens de eerste week van maart 2020 (week 10) werden in België de eerste besmettingen met het SARS-CoV-2 virus vastgesteld[1]. De verspreiding van dit nieuwe virus veroorzaakte tijdens week 10 (2 t/m 8 maart 2020) een tweede piek in consultaties voor griepklachten bij de huisarts.

 

De strenge afstands en gezondheidsmaatregelen die ingingen op vanaf 14 maart 2020 en de teststrategie voor COVID-19 hadden een negatieve invloed op de werking van de griepsurveillances, door overbelasting van de zorgverleners, consultaties op afstand,…

 

[1] Gerepatrieerde patiënt uit Wuhan (04/02/2020) niet mee gerekend.

%I Sciensano %C Brussel, België %P 31 %8 28/07/2023 %G eng %M D/2022.14.440/43 %0 Report %D 2023 %T Virological surveillance of influenza in Belgium, season 2019-2020 %A Isabelle Thomas %A Cyril Barbezange %A Steven Van Gucht %A Jeannine Weyckmans %A Ilham Fdillate %A Reinout van Eycken %A Assia Hamouda %A Nathalie Bossuyt %A Sophie Quoilin %A Dieter Van Cauteren %K INFLUENZA %K respiratory virus %K Surveillance %K virology %X

The 2019-2020 winter season was characterized by the occurrence after the flu epidemic of the COVID-19 pandemic.  The Influenza epidemic in Belgium lasted 6 weeks and was a flu season of moderate intensity characterized by the co-circulation of A(H1N1)pdm09 and A(H3N2), with the predominance of A(H1N1). The epidemic threshold was crossed at  week 4-2020 (January 13 to January 19, 2020 with an incidence of 245 consultations /100.000 inhabitants and the peak was reached in week 5 with 550 consultations/100.000 inhabitants. After week 5- 2020, the incidence of ILI consultations decreased but remained above the threshold for several weeks likely due to the COVID-19 epidemic with a new ILI peak  at week 13 exceeding the influenza peak seen in  week 5  (Fig. 1). The emergence of COVID-19, spreading through respiratory transmission, required the implementation of physical distancing measures likely contributed to an abrupt decline of the influenza season.

The majority of the H1N1 viruses fell in the 6B.1A5A subgroup represented by the reference strain A/Norway/3433/2018.

About half of the sequenced A(H3N2) viruses belonged to the clade 3C.2a1 and the remaining belonged to the  clade 3C.3a close the vaccine strain for the northern hemisphere A/Kansas/14/2017.

Most of  the seqenced influenza B-Victoria viruses were triple-deletion variants similar to B/Washington/02/2019.  

Respiratory  samples were also analysed for other respiratory viruses. In the ILI population,  70 % of the patients were positive for at least one respiratory virus (including Influenza and co-infections). In the  SARI population, 52% of the patients were positive for at least one respiratory viruses (including influenza, SARS-COV-2, other respiratory viruses  or different combination of co-infection). From week 10 , the first SARS-CoV-2 patient were diagnosed.

These patients were mostly adults and children above 14 years old.

Severity was moderate in comparison to the previous season and comparable to previous seasons.

None of the analyzed strains presented mutations known to be associated to resistance to antivirals neuraminidase inhibitors (Oseltamivir et Zanamivir).

%I Sciensano %C Brussels, Belgium %P 35 %8 2023 %G eng %M D/2023.14.440/88 %R https://doi.org/10.25608/43gy-qs94 %0 Report %D 2023 %T Virological surveillance report of the NRC influenza for season 2020-2021 %A Isabelle Thomas %A Cyril Barbezange %A Sarah Denayer %A Jeannine Weyckmans %A Assia Hamouda %A Reinout van Eycken %A Ilham Fdillate %A Steven Van Gucht %K INFLUENZA %K respiratory virus %K Surveillance %K virology %X

Amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, the sentinel surveillance resumed slowly in the season 2020-2021. Only the severe acute respiratory infections (SARI) allowed to properly evaluate the circulation of respiratory viruses during the 2020-2021 season. The season was characterized by the absence of an influenza virus epidemic, and the return of parainfluenza viruses and respiratory syncytial viruses detected mainly in children. SARS-CoV-2 continued to intensively circulate and was mainly detected in adults and older adults. Other respiratory viruses such as metapneumoviruses, seasonal coronaviruses, rhino- and enteroviruses, and adenoviruses were also detected, without clear epidemic wave.

%I Sciensano %C Brussels, Belgium %P 24 %8 2023 %G eng %M D/2023.14.440/87 %R https://doi.org/10.25608/y0b7-s054 %0 Journal Article %J Int J Infect Dis %D 2022 %T Efficacy and safety of camostat mesylate in early COVID-19 disease in an ambulatory setting: a randomized placebo-controlled phase II trial. %A Els Tobback %A Sophie Degroote %A Sabine Buysse %A Liesbeth Delesie %A Lucas Van Dooren %A Sophie Vanherrewege %A Cyril Barbezange %A Veronik Hutse %A Marta Romano %A Isabelle Thomas %A Padalko, Elizaveta %A S. Callens %A Marie-Angélique De Scheerder %K COVID-19 %K Double-Blind Method %K Esters %K Guanidines %K Humans %K SARS-CoV-2 %K Treatment Outcome %X

OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to assess the efficacy and safety of 300 mg camostat mesylate three times daily in a fasted state to treat early phase COVID-19 in an ambulatory setting.

METHODS: We conducted a phase II randomized controlled trial in symptomatic (maximum 5 days) and asymptomatic patients with confirmed COVID-19 infection. Patients were randomly assigned in a 2:1 ratio to receive either camostat mesylate or a placebo. Outcomes included change in nasopharyngeal viral load, time to clinical improvement, the presence of neutralizing antibodies, and safety.

RESULTS: Of 96 participants randomized between November 2020 and June 2021, analyses were performed on the data of 90 participants who completed treatment (N = 61 camostat mesylate, N = 29 placebo). The estimated mean change in cycle threshold between day 1 and day 5 between the camostat and placebo group was 1.183 (P = 0.511). The unadjusted hazard ratio for clinical improvement in the camostat group was 0.965 (95% confidence interval, 0.480-1.942, P = 0.921 by Cox regression). The percentage distribution of the 50% neutralizing antibody titer at day 28 visit and frequency of adverse events were similar between the two groups.

CONCLUSION: Under this protocol, camostat mesylate was not found to be effective as an antiviral drug against SARS-CoV-2.

TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT04625114; November 12, 2020.

%B Int J Infect Dis %V 122 %8 2022 Sep %G eng %R 10.1016/j.ijid.2022.06.054 %0 Journal Article %J Microb Genom %D 2022 %T A general approach to identify low-frequency variants within influenza samples collected during routine surveillance. %A Laura Van Poelvoorde %A Thomas Delcourt %A Marnik Vuylsteke %A Sigrid C.J. De Keersmaecker %A Isabelle Thomas %A Steven Van Gucht %A Saelens, Xavier %A Nancy Roosens %A Kevin Vanneste %K COVID-19 %K Genome, Viral %K Humans %K Influenza A Virus, H3N2 Subtype %K Influenza, Human %K SARS-CoV-2 %X

Influenza viruses exhibit considerable diversity between hosts. Additionally, different quasispecies can be found within the same host. High-throughput sequencing technologies can be used to sequence a patient-derived virus population at sufficient depths to identify low-frequency variants (LFV) present in a quasispecies, but many challenges remain for reliable LFV detection because of experimental errors introduced during sample preparation and sequencing. High genomic copy numbers and extensive sequencing depths are required to differentiate false positive from real LFV, especially at low allelic frequencies (AFs). This study proposes a general approach for identifying LFV in patient-derived samples obtained during routine surveillance. Firstly, validated thresholds were determined for LFV detection, whilst balancing both the cost and feasibility of reliable LFV detection in clinical samples. Using a genetically well-defined population of influenza A viruses, thresholds of at least 10 genomes per microlitre and AF of ≥5 % were established as detection limits. Secondly, a subset of 59 retained influenza A (H3N2) samples from the 2016-2017 Belgian influenza season was composed. Thirdly, as a proof of concept for the added value of LFV for routine influenza monitoring, potential associations between patient data and whole genome sequencing data were investigated. A significant association was found between a high prevalence of LFV and disease severity. This study provides a general methodology for influenza LFV detection, which can also be adopted by other national influenza reference centres and for other viruses such as SARS-CoV-2. Additionally, this study suggests that the current relevance of LFV for routine influenza surveillance programmes might be undervalued.

%B Microb Genom %V 8 %8 2022 09 %G eng %N 9 %R 10.1099/mgen.0.000867 %0 Journal Article %J Environmental Research %D 2022 %T Validity of self-reported air pollution annoyance to assess long-term exposure to air pollutants in Belgium %A Ingrid Pelgrims %A Brecht Devleesschauwer %A Hans Keune %A Tim S. Nawrot %A Roy Remmen %A Nelly D. Saenen %A Isabelle Thomas %A Vanessa Gorasso %A Johan Van der Heyden %A Delphine De Smedt %A Eva M De Clercq %K air pollution %K Environmental annoyance %K exposure assessment %K health interview survey %X

In epidemiological studies, assessment of long term exposure to air pollution is often estimated using air pollution measurements at fixed monitoring stations, and interpolated to the residence of survey participants through Geographical Information Systems (GIS). However, obtaining georeferenced address data from national registries requires a long and cumbersome administrative procedure, since this kind of personal data is protected by privacy regulations. This paper aims to assess whether information collected in health interview surveys, including air pollution annoyance, could be used to build prediction models for assessing individual long term exposure to air pollution, removing the need for data on personal residence address.

Analyses were carried out based on data from the Belgian Health Interview Survey (BHIS) 2013 linked to GIS-modelled air pollution exposure at the residence place of participants older than 15 years (n = 9347). First, univariate linear regressions were performed to assess the relationship between air pollution annoyance and modelled exposure to each air pollutant. Secondly, a multivariable linear regression was performed for each air pollutant based on a set of variables selected with elastic net cross-validation, including variables related to environmental annoyance, socio-economic and health status of participants. Finally, the performance of the models to classify individuals in three levels of exposure was assessed by means of a confusion matrix.

Our results suggest a limited validity of self-reported air pollution annoyance as a direct proxy for air pollution exposure and a weak contribution of environmental annoyance variables in prediction models. Models using variables related to the socio-economic status, region, urban level and environmental annoyance allow to predict individual air pollution exposure with a percentage of error ranging from 8% to 18%. Although these models do not provide very accurate predictions in terms of absolute exposure to air pollution, they do allow to classify individuals in groups of relative exposure levels, ranking participants from low over medium to high air pollution exposure. This model represents a rapid assessment tool to identify groups within the BHIS participants undergoing the highest levels of environmental stress.

%B Environmental Research %V 210 %8 Jan-07-2022 %G eng %R 10.1016/j.envres.2022.113014 %0 Journal Article %J Front Microbiol %D 2022 %T Whole-Genome Sequence Approach and Phylogenomic Stratification Improve the Association Analysis of Mutations With Patient Data in Influenza Surveillance. %A Laura Van Poelvoorde %A Kevin Vanneste %A Sigrid C.J. De Keersmaecker %A Nancy Roosens %E Isabelle Thomas %E Steven Van Gucht %Y Saelens, Xavier %? Nina Van Goethem %X

Each year, seasonal influenza results in high mortality and morbidity. The current classification of circulating influenza viruses is mainly focused on the hemagglutinin gene. Whole-genome sequencing (WGS) enables tracking mutations across all influenza segments allowing a better understanding of the epidemiological effects of intra- and inter-seasonal evolutionary dynamics, and exploring potential associations between mutations across the viral genome and patient's clinical data. In this study, mutations were identified in 253 Influenza A (H3N2) clinical isolates from the 2016-2017 influenza season in Belgium. As a proof of concept, available patient data were integrated with this genomic data, resulting in statistically significant associations that could be relevant to improve the vaccine and clinical management of infected patients. Several mutations were significantly associated with the sampling period. A new approach was proposed for exploring mutational effects in highly diverse Influenza A (H3N2) strains through considering the viral genetic background by using phylogenetic classification to stratify the samples. This resulted in several mutations that were significantly associated with patients suffering from renal insufficiency. This study demonstrates the usefulness of using WGS data for tracking mutations across the complete genome and linking these to patient data, and illustrates the importance of accounting for the viral genetic background in association studies. A limitation of this association study, especially when analyzing stratified groups, relates to the number of samples, especially in the context of national surveillance of small countries. Therefore, we investigated if international databases like GISAID may help to verify whether observed associations in the Belgium A (H3N2) samples, could be extrapolated to a global level. This work highlights the need to construct international databases with both information of viral genome sequences and patient data.

%B Front Microbiol %V 13 %8 2022 %G eng %R 10.3389/fmicb.2022.809887 %0 Journal Article %J Frontiers in Microbiology %D 2022 %T Whole-Genome Sequence Approach and Phylogenomic Stratification Improve the Association Analysis of Mutations With Patient Data in Influenza Surveillance %A Laura Van Poelvoorde %A Kevin Vanneste %A Sigrid C.J. De Keersmaecker %A Isabelle Thomas %A Nina Van Goethem %A Steven Van Gucht %A Xavier Saelens %A Nancy Roosens %B Frontiers in Microbiology %V 13 %8 Jul-04-2023 %G eng %R 10.3389/fmicb.2022.809887 %0 Journal Article %J BMC Public Health %D 2021 %T Association between urban environment and mental health in Brussels, Belgium %A Ingrid Pelgrims %A Brecht Devleesschauwer %A Madeleine Guyot %A Keune, Hans %A Tim S. Nawrot %A Roy Remmen %A Nelly D. Saenen %A Sonia Trabelsi %A Isabelle Thomas %A Raf Aerts %A Eva M De Clercq %K air pollution %K Building morphology %K Environmental epidemiology %K Green space %K Mental health %K noise %X

Background: Mental health disorders appear as a growing problem in urban areas. While common mental health disorders are generally linked to demographic and socioeconomic factors, little is known about the interaction with the urban environment. With growing urbanization, more and more people are exposed to environmental stressors potentially contributing to increased stress and impairing mental health. It is therefore important to identify features of the urban environment that affect the mental health of city dwellers. The aim of this study was to define associations of combined long-term exposure to air pollution, noise, surrounding green at different scales, and building morphology with several dimensions of mental health in Brussels. Methods: Research focuses on the inhabitants of the Brussels Capital Region older than 15 years. The epidemiological study was carried out based on the linkage of data from the national health interview surveys (2008 and 2013) and specifically developed indicators describing each participant’s surroundings in terms of air quality, noise, surrounding green, and building morphology. These data are based on the geographical coordinates of the participant’s residence and processed using Geographical Information Systems (GIS). Mental health status was approached through several validated indicators: the Symptom Checklist-90-R subscales for depressive, anxiety and sleeping disorders and the 12-Item General Health Questionnaire for general well-being. For each mental health outcome, single and multi-exposure models were performed through multivariate logistic regressions. Results: Our results suggest that traffic-related air pollution (black carbon, NO2, PM10) exposure was positively associated with higher odds of depressive disorders. No association between green surrounding, noise, building morphology and mental health could be demonstrated. Conclusions: These findings have important implications because most of the Brussel’s population resides in areas where particulate matters concentrations are above the World Health Organization guidelines. This suggests that policies aiming to reduce traffic related-air pollution could also reduce the burden of depressive disorders in Brussels

%B BMC Public Health %V 21 %8 Jan-12-2021 %G eng %N 1 %R 10.1186/s12889-021-10557-7 %0 Journal Article %J Genes %D 2021 %T Deepening of In Silico Evaluation of SARS-CoV-2 Detection RT-qPCR Assays in the Context of New Variants %A Mathieu Gand %A Kevin Vanneste %A Isabelle Thomas %A Steven Van Gucht %A Arnaud Capron %A Philippe Herman %A Nancy Roosens %A Sigrid C.J. De Keersmaecker %K SARS-CoV-2; COVID-19; variants; detection; RT-qPCR; in silico specificity evaluation; bioinformatics tool; WGS data; mismatches; primers and probes %X

For 1 year now, the world is undergoing a coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic due to the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The most widely used method for COVID-19 diagnosis is the detection of viral RNA by RT-qPCR with a specific set of primers and probe. It is important to frequently evaluate the performance of these tests and this can be done first by an in silico approach. Previously, we reported some mismatches between the oligonucleotides of publicly available RT-qPCR assays and SARS-CoV-2 genomes collected from GISAID and NCBI, potentially impacting proper detection of the virus. In the present study, 11 primers and probe sets investigated during the first study were evaluated again with 84,305 new SARS-CoV-2 unique genomes collected between June 2020 and January 2021. The lower inclusivity of the China CDC assay targeting the gene N has continued to decrease with new mismatches detected, whereas the other evaluated assays kept their inclusivity above 99%. Additionally, some mutations specific to new SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern were found to be located in oligonucleotide annealing sites. This might impact the strategy to be considered for future SARS-CoV-2 testing. Given the potential threat of the new variants, it is crucial to assess if they can still be correctly targeted by the primers and probes of the RT-qPCR assays. Our study highlights that considering the evolution of the virus and the emergence of new variants, an in silico (re-)evaluation should be performed on a regular basis. Ideally, this should be done for all the RT-qPCR assays employed for SARS-CoV-2 detection, including also commercial tests, although the primer and probe sequences used in these kits are rarely disclosed, which impedes independent performance evaluation.

%B Genes %V 12 %8 Jan-04-2021 %G eng %N 4 %R 10.3390/genes12040565 %0 Journal Article %J BMC Infectious Diseases %D 2021 %T Evaluation of the added value of viral genomic information for predicting severity of influenza infection %A Nina Van Goethem %A Annie Robert %A Nathalie Bossuyt %A Laura Van Poelvoorde %A Sophie Quoilin %A Sigrid C.J. De Keersmaecker %A Brecht Devleesschauwer %A Isabelle Thomas %A Kevin Vanneste %A Nancy Roosens %A Herman Van Oyen %B BMC Infectious Diseases %V 21 %8 Jan-12-2021 %G eng %N 1 %R 10.1186/s12879-021-06510-z %0 Journal Article %J Lancet Microbe %D 2021 %T Monitoring of human coronaviruses in Belgian primary care and hospitals, 2015-20: a surveillance study. %A Nathalie Fischer %A Nicolas Dauby %A Nathalie Bossuyt %A Marijke Reynders %A Gerard, Michèle %A Lacor, Patrick %A Siel Daelemans %A Bénédicte Lissoir %A Xavier Holemans %A Koen Magerman %A Door Jouck %A Marc Bourgeois %A Bénédicte Delaere %A Sophie Quoilin %A Steven Van Gucht %A Isabelle Thomas %A Cyril Barbezange %A Lorenzo Subissi %X

Background: Seasonal human coronaviruses (hCoVs) broadly circulate in humans. Their epidemiology and effect on the spread of emerging coronaviruses has been neglected thus far. We aimed to elucidate the epidemiology and burden of disease of seasonal hCoVs OC43, NL63, and 229E in patients in primary care and hospitals in Belgium between 2015 and 2020.

Methods: We retrospectively analysed data from the national influenza surveillance networks in Belgium during the winter seasons of 2015-20. Respiratory specimens were collected through the severe acute respiratory infection (SARI) and the influenza-like illness networks from patients with acute respiratory illness with onset within the previous 10 days, with measured or reported fever of 38°C or greater, cough, or dyspnoea; and for patients admitted to hospital for at least one night. Potential risk factors were recorded and patients who were admitted to hospital were followed up for the occurrence of complications or death for the length of their hospital stay. All samples were analysed by multiplex quantitative RT-PCRs for respiratory viruses, including seasonal hCoVs OC43, NL63, and 229E. We estimated the prevalence and incidence of seasonal hCoV infection, with or without co-infection with other respiratory viruses. We evaluated the association between co-infections and potential risk factors with complications or death in patients admitted to hospital with seasonal hCoV infections by age group. Samples received from week 8, 2020, were tested for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).

Findings: 2573 primary care and 6494 hospital samples were included in the study. 161 (6·3%) of 2573 patients in primary care and 371 (5·7%) of 6494 patients admitted to hospital were infected with a seasonal hCoV. OC43 was the seasonal hCoV with the highest prevalence across age groups and highest incidence in children admitted to hospital who were younger than 5 years (incidence 9·0 [95% CI 7·2-11·2] per 100 000 person-months) and adults older than 65 years (2·6 [2·1-3·2] per 100 000 person-months). Among 262 patients admitted to hospital with seasonal hCoV infection and with complete information on potential risk factors, 66 (73·3%) of 90 patients who had complications or died also had at least one potential risk factor (p=0·0064). Complications in children younger than 5 years were associated with co-infection (24 [36·4%] of 66; p=0·017), and in teenagers and adults (≥15 years), more complications arose in patients with a single hCoV infection (49 [45·0%] of 109; p=0·0097). In early 2020, the Belgian SARI surveillance detected the first SARS-CoV-2-positive sample concomitantly with the first confirmed COVID-19 case with no travel history to China.

Interpretation: The main burden of severe seasonal hCoV infection lies with children younger than 5 years with co-infections and adults aged 65 years and older with pre-existing comorbidities. These age and patient groups should be targeted for enhanced observation when in medical care and in possible future vaccination strategies, and co-infections in children younger than 5 years should be considered during diagnosis and treatment. Our findings support the use of national influenza surveillance systems for seasonal hCoV monitoring and early detection, and monitoring of emerging coronaviruses such as SARS-CoV-2.

Funding: Belgian Federal Public Service Health, Food Chain Safety, and Environment; Belgian National Insurance Health Care (Institut national d'assurance maladie-invalidité/Rijksinstituut voor ziekte-en invaliditeitsverzekering); and Regional Health Authorities (Flanders Agentschap zorg en gezondheid, Brussels Commission communautaire commune, Wallonia Agence pour une vie de qualité).

%B Lancet Microbe %V 2 %8 2021 Mar %G eng %N 3 %R 10.1016/S2666-5247(20)30221-4 %0 Journal Article %J Lancet Infect Dis %D 2021 %T Persistence of IgG response to SARS-CoV-2. %A Els Duysburgh %A Laure Mortgat %A Cyril Barbezange %A Katelijne Dierick %A Nathalie Fischer %A Heyndrickx, Leo %A Veronik Hutse %A Isabelle Thomas %A Steven Van Gucht %A Vuylsteke, Bea %A Ariën, Kevin K %A I Desombere %K Antibodies, Neutralizing %K Antibodies, Viral %K COVID-19 %K Health Personnel %K Host-Pathogen Interactions %K Humans %K Immunoglobulin G %K SARS-CoV-2 %K Seroepidemiologic Studies %B Lancet Infect Dis %V 21 %8 2021 02 %G eng %N 2 %R 10.1016/S1473-3099(20)30943-9 %0 Journal Article %J The Lancet Infectious Diseases %D 2021 %T Persistence of IgG response to SARS-CoV-2 %A Els Duysburgh %A Laure Mortgat %A Cyril Barbezange %A Katelijne Dierick %A Nathalie Fischer %A Heyndrickx, Leo %A Veronik Hutse %A Isabelle Thomas %A Steven Van Gucht %A Vuylsteke, Bea %A Ariën, Kevin K %A I Desombere %B The Lancet Infectious Diseases %V 21 %8 Jan-02-2021 %G eng %N 2 %R 10.1016/S1473-3099(20)30943-9 %0 Journal Article %J Clin Infect Dis %D 2021 %T Poor antibody response to BioNTech/Pfizer COVID-19 vaccination in SARS-CoV-2 naïve residents of nursing homes. %A Pieter Pannus %A Kristof Y Neven %A Stéphane De Craeye %A Heyndrickx, Leo %A Sara Vande Kerckhove %A Daphnée Georges %A Johan Michiels %A Antoine Francotte %A Marc Van den Bulcke %A Maan Zrein %A Steven Van Gucht %A Marie-Noëlle Schmickler %A Mathieu Verbrugghe %A André Matagne %A Isabelle Thomas %A Katelijne Dierick %A Joshua A Weiner %A Margaret E Ackerman %A Stanislas Goriely %A Maria Goossens %A Ariën, Kevin K %A I Desombere %A Arnaud Marchant %X

BACKGROUND: Residents of nursing homes (NH) are at high risk of COVID-19 related morbidity and death and may respond poorly to vaccination because of old age and frequent comorbidities.

METHODS: Seventy-eight residents and 106 staff members, naïve or previously infected with SARS-CoV-2, were recruited in NH in Belgium before immunization with two doses of 30µg BNT162b2 mRNA vaccine at day 0 and day 21. Binding antibodies (Ab) to SARS-CoV-2 receptor binding domain (RBD), spike domains S1 and S2, RBD Ab avidity, and neutralizing Ab against SARS-CoV-2 wild type and B.1.351 were assessed at days 0, 21, 28, and 49.

RESULTS: SARS-CoV-2 naïve residents had lower Ab responses to BNT162b2 mRNA vaccination than naïve staff. These poor responses involved lower levels of IgG to all spike domains, lower avidity of RBD IgG, and lower levels of Ab neutralizing the vaccine strain. No naïve resident had detectable neutralizing Ab to the B.1.351 variant. In contrast, SARS-CoV-2 infected residents had high responses to mRNA vaccination, with Ab levels comparable to infected staff. Cluster analysis revealed that poor vaccine responders not only included naïve residents but also naïve staff, emphasizing the heterogeneity of responses to mRNA vaccination in the general population.

CONCLUSIONS: The poor Ab responses to mRNA vaccination observed in infection naïve residents and in some naïve staff members of NH suggest suboptimal protection against breakthrough infection, especially with variants of concern. These data support the administration of a third dose of mRNA vaccine to further improve protection of NH residents against COVID-19.

%B Clin Infect Dis %8 2021 Dec 03 %G eng %R 10.1093/cid/ciab998 %0 Journal Article %J BMJ Open %D 2021 %T Prevalence and incidence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies among healthcare workers in Belgian hospitals before vaccination: a prospective cohort study. %A Laure Mortgat %A Kristien Verdonck %A Veronik Hutse %A Isabelle Thomas %A Cyril Barbezange %A Heyndrickx, Leo %A Nathalie Fischer %A Vuylsteke, Bea %A Ines Kabouche %A Ariën, Kevin K %A I Desombere %A Els Duysburgh %K Adult %K Belgium %K COVID-19 %K Female %K Health Personnel %K hospitals %K Humans %K incidence %K prevalence %K Prospective Studies %K SARS-CoV-2 %K Seroepidemiologic Studies %K Vaccination %X

OBJECTIVES: To describe prevalence and incidence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies among Belgian hospital healthcare workers (HCW) in April-December 2020.

DESIGN: Prospective cohort study. Follow-up was originally planned until September and later extended.

SETTING: Multicentre study, 17 hospitals.

PARTICIPANTS: 50 HCW were randomly selected per hospital. HCW employed beyond the end of the study and whose profession involved contact with patients were eligible. 850 HCW entered the study in April-May 2020, 673 HCW (79%) attended the September visit and 308 (36%) the December visit.

OUTCOME MEASURES: A semiquantitative ELISA was used to detect IgG against SARS-CoV-2 in serum (Euroimmun) at 10 time points. In seropositive samples, neutralising antibodies were measured using a virus neutralisation test. Real-time reverse transcription PCR (RT-qPCR) was performed to detect SARS-CoV-2 on nasopharyngeal swabs. Participant characteristics and the presence of symptoms were collected via an online questionnaire.

RESULTS: Among all participants, 80% were women, 60% nurses and 21% physicians. Median age was 40 years. The seroprevalence remained relatively stable from April (7.7% (95% CI: 4.8% to 12.1%) to September (8.2% (95% CI: 5.7% to 11.6%)) and increased thereafter, reaching 19.7% (95% CI: 12.0% to 30.6%) in December 2020. 76 of 778 initially seronegative participants seroconverted during the follow-up (incidence: 205/1000 person-years). Among all seropositive individuals, 118/148 (80%) had a positive neutralisation test, 83/147 (56%) presented or reported a positive RT-qPCR, and 130/147 (88%) reported COVID-19-compatible symptoms at least once. However, only 46/73 (63%) of the seroconverters presented COVID-19-compatible symptoms in the month prior to seroconversion.

CONCLUSIONS: The seroprevalence among hospital HCW was slightly higher than that of the general Belgian population but followed a similar evolution, suggesting that infection prevention and control measures were effective and should be strictly maintained. After two SARS-CoV-2 waves, 80% of HCW remained seronegative, justifying their prioritisation in the vaccination strategy.

TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: NCT04373889.

%B BMJ Open %V 11 %8 2021 06 29 %G eng %N 6 %R 10.1136/bmjopen-2021-050824 %0 Journal Article %J BMJ Open %D 2021 %T Prevalence and incidence of anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibodies among healthcare workers in Belgian hospitals before vaccination: a prospective cohort studyObjectivesDesignSettingParticipantsOutcome measuresResultsConclusionsTrial registration number %A Laure Mortgat %A Kristien Verdonck %A Veronik Hutse %A Isabelle Thomas %A Cyril Barbezange %A Heyndrickx, Leo %A Nathalie Fischer %A Vuylsteke, Bea %A Ines Kabouche %A Ariën, Kevin K %A I Desombere %A Els Duysburgh %B BMJ Open %V 11 %8 May-06-2023 %G eng %N 6 %R 10.1136/bmjopen-2021-050824 %0 Journal Article %J Arch Public Health %D 2021 %T The prior infection with SARS-CoV-2 study (PICOV) in nursing home residents and staff - study protocol description and presentation of preliminary findings on symptoms. %A Maria Goossens %A Kristof Y Neven %A Pieter Pannus %A Cyril Barbezange %A Isabelle Thomas %A Steven Van Gucht %A Katelijne Dierick %A Marie-Noëlle Schmickler %A Mathieu Verbrugghe %A Nele Van Loon %A Ariën, Kevin K %A Arnaud Marchant %A Stanislas Goriely %A I Desombere %X

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic, caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has presented itself as one of the most important health concerns of the 2020's, and hit the geriatric population the hardest. The presence of co-morbidities and immune ageing in the elderly lead to an increased susceptibility to COVID-19, as is the case for other influenza-like illnesses (ILI) or acute respiratory tract infections (ARI). However, little is known, about the impact of a previous or current infection on the other in terms of susceptibility, immune response, and clinical course. The aim of the "Prior Infection with SARS-COV-2" (PICOV) study is to compare the time to occurrence of an ILI or ARI between participants with a confirmed past SARS-CoV-2 infection (previously infected) and those without a confirmed past infection (naïve) in residents and staff members of nursing homes. This paper describes the study design and population characteristics at baseline.

METHODS: In 26 Belgian nursing homes, all eligible residents and staff members were invited to participate, resulting in 1,226 participants. They were classified as naïve or previously infected based on the presence of detectable SARS-CoV-2 antibodies and/or a positive RT-qPCR result before participation in the study. Symptoms from a prior SARS-CoV-2 infection between March and August 2020 were compared between previously infected residents and staff members.

RESULTS: Infection naïve nursing home residents reported fewer symptoms than previously infected residents: on average 1.9 and 3.1 symptoms, respectively (p = 0.016). The same effect was observed for infection naïve staff members and previously infected staff members (3.1 and 6.1 symptoms, respectively; p <0.0001). Moreover, the antibody development after a SARS-CoV-2 infection differs between residents and staff members, as previously infected residents tend to have a higher rate of asymptomatic cases compared to previously infected staff members (20.5% compared to 12.4%; p <0.0001).

CONCLUSIONS: We can postulate that COVID-19 disease development and symptomatology are different between a geriatric and younger population. Therefore, the occurrence and severity of a future ILI and/or ARI might vary from resident to staff.

%B Arch Public Health %V 79 %8 2021 Nov 11 %G eng %N 1 %R 10.1186/s13690-021-00715-z %0 Journal Article %J Environment International %D 2021 %T Residing in urban areas with higher green space is associated with lower mortality risk: A census-based cohort study with ten years of follow-up %A Mariska Bauwelinck %A Casas, Lidia %A Tim S. Nawrot %A Nemery, Benoit %A Sonia Trabelsi %A Isabelle Thomas %A Raf Aerts %A Wouter Lefebvre %A Charlotte Vanpoucke %A An Van Nieuwenhuyse %A Deboosere, Patrick %A Vandenheede, Hadewijch %K COPD %K Greenness %K Greenspace %K Ischemic heart disease %K Perception %K population-based %X

Background

Epidemiological studies suggest that residing close to green space reduce mortality rates. We investigated the relationship between long-term exposure to residential green space and non-accidental and cardio-respiratory mortality.

Methods

We linked the Belgian 2001 census to population and mortality register follow-up data (2001–2011) among adults aged 30 years and older residing in the five largest urban areas in Belgium (n = 2,185,170 and mean follow-up time 9.4 years). Residential addresses were available at baseline. Exposure to green space was defined as 1) surrounding greenness (2006) [normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) and modified soil-adjusted vegetation index (MSAVI2)] within buffers of 300 m, 500 m, and 1000 m; 2) surrounding green space (2006) [Urban Atlas (UA) and CORINE Land Cover (CLC)] within buffers of 300 m, 500 m, and 1000 m; and 3) perceived neighborhood green space (2001). Cox proportional hazards models with age as the underlying time scale were used to probe into cause-specific mortality (non-accidental, respiratory, COPD, cardiovascular, ischemic heart disease (IHD), and cerebrovascular). Models were adjusted for several sociodemographic variables (age, sex, marital status, country of birth, education level, employment status, and area mean income). We further adjusted our main models for annual mean (2010) values of ambient air pollution (PM2.5, PM10, NO2 and BC, one at a time), and we additionally explored potential mediation with the aforementioned pollutants.

Results

Higher degrees of residential green space were associated with lower rates of non-accidental and respiratory mortality. In fully adjusted models, hazard ratios (HR) per interquartile range (IQR) increase in NDVI 500 m buffer (IQR: 0.24) and UA 500 m buffer (IQR: 0.31) were 0.97 (95%CI 0.96–0.98) and 0.99 (95%CI 0.98–0.99) for non-accidental mortality, and 0.95 (95%CI 0.93–0.98) and 0.97 (95%CI 0.96–0.99) for respiratory mortality. For perceived neighborhood green space, HRs were 0.93 (95%CI 0.92–0.94) and 0.94 (95%CI 0.91–0.98) for non-accidental and respiratory mortality, respectively. The observed lower mortality risks associated with residential exposure to green space were largely independent from exposure to ambient air pollutants.

Conclusion

We observed evidence for lower mortality risk in associations with long-term residential exposure to green space in most but not all studied causes of death in a large representative cohort for the five largest urban areas in Belgium. These findings support the importance of the availability of residential green space in urban areas.

%B Environment International %V 148 %8 Jan-03-2021 %G eng %R 10.1016/j.envint.2020.106365 %0 Journal Article %J Euro Surveill %D 2021 %T Spotlight influenza: Extending influenza surveillance to detect non-influenza respiratory viruses of public health relevance: analysis of surveillance data, Belgium, 2015 to 2019. %A Lorenzo Subissi %A Nathalie Bossuyt %A Marijke Reynders %A Gerard, Michèle %A Nicolas Dauby %A Lacor, Patrick %A Siel Daelemans %A Bénédicte Lissoir %A Xavier Holemans %A Koen Magerman %A Door Jouck %A Marc Bourgeois %A Bénédicte Delaere %A Sophie Quoilin %A Steven Van Gucht %A Isabelle Thomas %A Cyril Barbezange %K Belgium %K Child %K Humans %K Infant %K Influenza, Human %K Orthomyxoviridae %K public health %K Respiratory Tract Infections %K Sentinel Surveillance %K Viruses %X

BackgroundSeasonal influenza-like illness (ILI) affects millions of people yearly. Severe acute respiratory infections (SARI), mainly influenza, are a leading cause of hospitalisation and mortality. Increasing evidence indicates that non-influenza respiratory viruses (NIRV) also contribute to the burden of SARI. In Belgium, SARI surveillance by a network of sentinel hospitals has been ongoing since 2011.AimWe report the results of using in-house multiplex qPCR for the detection of a flexible panel of viruses in respiratory ILI and SARI samples and the estimated incidence rates of SARI associated with each virus.MethodsWe defined ILI as an illness with onset of fever and cough or dyspnoea. SARI was defined as an illness requiring hospitalisation with onset of fever and cough or dyspnoea within the previous 10 days. Samples were collected in four winter seasons and tested by multiplex qPCR for influenza virus and NIRV. Using catchment population estimates, we calculated incidence rates of SARI associated with each virus.ResultsOne third of the SARI cases were positive for NIRV, reaching 49.4% among children younger than 15 years. In children younger than 5 years, incidence rates of NIRV-associated SARI were twice that of influenza (103.5 vs 57.6/100,000 person-months); co-infections with several NIRV, respiratory syncytial viruses, human metapneumoviruses and picornaviruses contributed most (33.1, 13.6, 15.8 and 18.2/100,000 person-months, respectively).ConclusionEarly testing for NIRV could be beneficial to clinical management of SARI patients, especially in children younger than 5 years, for whom the burden of NIRV-associated disease exceeds that of influenza.

%B Euro Surveill %V 26 %8 2021 09 %G eng %N 38 %R 10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2021.26.38.2001104 %0 Report %D 2021 %T Surveillance des infections à influenza. Rapport épidémiologique saison 2018-2019 %A Nathalie Bossuyt %A Isabelle Thomas %A Cyril Barbezange %A Natalia Bustos Sierra %A Dieter Van Cauteren %A Melissa Vermeulen %K Grippe %K ILI %K infections respiratoires %K INFLUENZA %K SARI %I Sciensano %C Bruxelles %8 08/07/2021 %G eng %M D/2019/14.440/103 %0 Report %D 2021 %T Surveillance van griepinfecties. Epidemiologisch rapport seizoen 2018-2019 %A Nathalie Bossuyt %A Isabelle Thomas %A Cyril Barbezange %A Dieter Van Cauteren %A Melissa Vermeulen %A Natalia Bustos Sierra %I Sciensano %C Brussel %8 08/07/2021 %G eng %M D/2019/14.440/102 %0 Journal Article %J Microb Genom %D 2021 %T Whole-genome-based phylogenomic analysis of the Belgian 2016-2017 influenza A(H3N2) outbreak season allows improved surveillance. %A Laura Van Poelvoorde %A Bert Bogaerts %A Fu, Qiang %A Sigrid C.J. De Keersmaecker %A Isabelle Thomas %A Nina Van Goethem %A Steven Van Gucht %A Raf Winand %A Saelens, Xavier %A Nancy Roosens %A Kevin Vanneste %K Belgium %K Hemagglutinin Glycoproteins, Influenza Virus %K Humans %K Influenza A Virus, H3N2 Subtype %K Influenza, Human %K Phylogeny %K Public Health Surveillance %K whole genome sequencing %X

Seasonal influenza epidemics are associated with high mortality and morbidity in the human population. Influenza surveillance is critical for providing information to national influenza programmes and for making vaccine composition predictions. Vaccination prevents viral infections, but rapid influenza evolution results in emerging mutants that differ antigenically from vaccine strains. Current influenza surveillance relies on Sanger sequencing of the haemagglutinin (HA) gene. Its classification according to World Health Organization (WHO) and European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) guidelines is based on combining certain genotypic amino acid mutations and phylogenetic analysis. Next-generation sequencing technologies enable a shift to whole-genome sequencing (WGS) for influenza surveillance, but this requires laboratory workflow adaptations and advanced bioinformatics workflows. In this study, 253 influenza A(H3N2) positive clinical specimens from the 2016-2017 Belgian season underwent WGS using the Illumina MiSeq system. HA-based classification according to WHO/ECDC guidelines did not allow classification of all samples. A new approach, considering the whole genome, was investigated based on using powerful phylogenomic tools including beast and Nextstrain, which substantially improved phylogenetic classification. Moreover, Bayesian inference via beast facilitated reassortment detection by both manual inspection and computational methods, detecting intra-subtype reassortants at an estimated rate of 15 %. Real-time analysis (i.e. as an outbreak is ongoing) via Nextstrain allowed positioning of the Belgian isolates into the globally circulating context. Finally, integration of patient data with phylogenetic groups and reassortment status allowed detection of several associations that would have been missed when solely considering HA, such as hospitalized patients being more likely to be infected with A(H3N2) reassortants, and the possibility to link several phylogenetic groups to disease severity indicators could be relevant for epidemiological monitoring. Our study demonstrates that WGS offers multiple advantages for influenza monitoring in (inter)national influenza surveillance, and proposes an improved methodology. This allows leveraging all information contained in influenza genomes, and allows for more accurate genetic characterization and reassortment detection.

%B Microb Genom %V 7 %8 2021 09 %G eng %N 9 %R 10.1099/mgen.0.000643 %0 Journal Article %J Euro Surveill %D 2020 %T Capturing respiratory syncytial virus season in Belgium using the influenza severe acute respiratory infection surveillance network, season 2018/19. %A Lorenzo Subissi %A Nathalie Bossuyt %A Marijke Reynders %A Gerard, Michèle %A Nicolas Dauby %A Marc Bourgeois %A Bénédicte Delaere %A Sophie Quoilin %A Steven Van Gucht %A Isabelle Thomas %A Cyril Barbezange %K ADOLESCENT %K Adult %K Aged %K Belgium %K Child %K Child, Preschool %K Female %K Fever %K Hospitalization %K Humans %K incidence %K Infant %K Influenza, Human %K Male %K middle aged %K Pilot Projects %K Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infections %K Respiratory Syncytial Virus, Human %K Respiratory Tract Infections %K Risk Factors %K Seasons %K Sentinel Surveillance %K Young adult %X

BackgroundRespiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a common cause of severe respiratory illness in young children (< 5 years old) and older adults (≥ 65 years old) leading the World Health Organization (WHO) to recommend the implementation of a dedicated surveillance in countries.AimWe tested the capacity of the severe acute respiratory infection (SARI) hospital network to contribute to RSV surveillance in Belgium.MethodsDuring the 2018/19 influenza season, we started the SARI surveillance for influenza in Belgium in week 40, earlier than in the past, to follow RSV activity, which usually precedes influenza virus circulation. While the WHO SARI case definition for influenza normally used by the SARI hospital network was employed, flexibility over the fever criterion was allowed, so patients without fever but meeting the other case definition criteria could be included in the surveillance.ResultsBetween weeks 40 2018 and 2 2019, we received 508 samples from SARI patients. We found an overall RSV detection rate of 62.4% (317/508), with rates varying depending on the age group: 77.6% in children aged < 5 years (253/326) and 34.4% in adults aged ≥ 65 years (44/128). Over 90% of the RSV-positive samples also positive for another tested respiratory virus (80/85) were from children aged < 5 years. Differences were also noted between age groups for symptoms, comorbidities and complications.ConclusionWith only marginal modifications in the case definition and the period of surveillance, the Belgian SARI network would be able to substantially contribute to RSV surveillance and burden evaluation in children and older adults, the two groups of particular interest for WHO.

%B Euro Surveill %V 25 %8 2020 10 %G eng %N 39 %R 10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2020.25.39.1900627 %0 Journal Article %J Trends in Biotechnology %D 2020 %T Next-Generation Sequencing: An Eye-Opener for the Surveillance of Antiviral Resistance in Influenza %A Laura Van Poelvoorde %A Xavier Saelens %A Isabelle Thomas %A Nancy Roosens %K antiviral resistance %K INFLUENZA %K Next-generation sequencing %K Surveillance %X

Next-generation sequencing (NGS) can enable a more effective response to a wide range of communicable disease threats, such as influenza, which is one of the leading causes of human morbidity and mortality worldwide. After vaccination, antivirals are the second line of defense against influenza. The use of currently available antivirals can lead to antiviral resistance mutations in the entire influenza genome. Therefore, the methods to detect these mutations should be developed and implemented. In this Opinion, we assess how NGS could be implemented to detect drug resistance mutations in clinical influenza virus isolates.

%B Trends in Biotechnology %V 38 %8 Jan-04-2020 %G eng %N 4 %R 10.1016/j.tibtech.2019.09.009 %0 Report %D 2020 %T SARS-CoV-2 prevalence, seroprevalence and seroconversion among healthcare workers in Belgium during the 2020 Covid-19 outbreak: Study protocol %A Laure Mortgat %A K. Arien %A Cyril Barbezange %A I Desombere %A Veronik Hutse %A Isabelle Thomas %A B. Vuylsteke %A Els Duysburgh %K Coronavirus %K COVID-19 %K HEALTHCARE WORKERS %K SARS-CoV-2 %K sero-prevalence study %I Sciensano %C Brussels, Belgium %8 2020 %G eng %0 Report %D 2020 %T SARS-CoV-2 prevalence, seroprevalence and seroconversion among healthcare workers in Belgium during the 2020 COVID-19 outbreak (SARS-CoV-2 HCW): amended protocol %A Laure Mortgat %A Lydia Gisle %A Rana Charafeddine %A Ariën, Kevin K %A Cyril Barbezange %A Stefaan Demarest %A I Desombere %A Veronik Hutse %A Isabelle Thomas %A Vuylsteke, Bea %A Els Duysburgh %K Belgium %K COVID-19 %K HEALTHCARE WORKERS %K hospital %K SARS-CoV-2 %K Seroprevalence %K well-being %I Sciensano %C Brussels, Belgium %8 2020 %G eng %0 Journal Article %J BMJ Open %D 2020 %T Urban environment and mental health: the NAMED project, protocol for a mixed-method study. %A Laura Lauwers %A Sonia Trabelsi %A Ingrid Pelgrims %A Hilde Bastiaens %A Eva M De Clercq %A Ariane Guilbert %A Madeleine Guyot %A Michael Leone %A Nawrot, Tim %A An Van Nieuwenhuyse %A Roy Remmen %A Nelly Saenen %A Isabelle Thomas %A Keune, Hans %K air pollution %K Belgium %K Cities %K Environment Design %K Humans %K Mental health %K noise %K Research Design %K Residence Characteristics %K social class %K Social Environment %K Urban Health %K Urban Population %X

INTRODUCTION: Mental health issues appear as a growing problem in modern societies and tend to be more frequent in big cities. Where increased evidence exists for positive links between nature and mental health, associations between urban environment characteristics and mental health are still not well understood. These associations are highly complex and require an interdisciplinary and integrated research approach to cover the broad range of mitigating factors. This article presents the study protocol of a project called Nature Impact on Mental Health Distribution that aims to generate a comprehensive understanding of associations between mental health and the urban residential environment.

METHODS AND ANALYSIS: Following a mixed-method approach, this project combines quantitative and qualitative research. In the quantitative part, we analyse among the Brussels urban population associations between the urban residential environment and mental health, taking respondents' socioeconomic status and physical health into account. Mental health is determined by the mental health indicators in the national Health Interview Survey (HIS). The urban residential environment is described by subjective indicators for the participant's dwelling and neighbourhood present in the HIS and objective indicators for buildings, network infrastructure and green environment developed for the purpose of this project. We assess the mediating role of physical activity, social life, noise and air pollution. In the qualitative part, we conduct walking interviews with Brussels residents to record their subjective well-being in association with their neighbourhood. In the validation part, results from these two approaches are triangulated and evaluated through interviews and focus groups with stakeholders of healthcare and urban planning sectors.

ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: The Privacy Commission of Belgium and ethical committee from University Hospital of Antwerp respectively approved quantitative database merging and qualitative interviewing. We will share project results with a wide audience including the scientific community, policy authorities and civil society through scientific and non-expert communication.

%B BMJ Open %V 10 %8 2020 02 20 %G eng %N 2 %R 10.1136/bmjopen-2019-031963 %0 Journal Article %J BMJ Open %D 2020 %T Urban environment and mental health: the NAMED project, protocol for a mixed-method study %A Laura Lauwers %A Sonia Trabelsi %A Ingrid Pelgrims %A Hilde Bastiaens %A Eva M De Clercq %A Ariane Guilbert %A Madeleine Guyot %A Michael Leone %A Nawrot, Tim %A An Van Nieuwenhuyse %A Roy Remmen %A Nelly Saenen %A Isabelle Thomas %A Keune, Hans %X

Introduction Mental health issues appear as a growing problem in modern societies and tend to be more frequent in big cities. Where increased evidence exists for positive links between nature and mental health, associations between urban environment characteristics and mental health are still not well understood. These associations are highly complex and require an interdisciplinary and integrated research approach to cover the broad range of mitigating factors. This article presents the study protocol of a project called Nature Impact on Mental Health Distribution that aims to generate a comprehensive understanding of associations between mental health and the urban residential environment.

Methods and analysis Following a mixed-method approach, this project combines quantitative and qualitative research. In the quantitative part, we analyse among the Brussels urban population associations between the urban residential environment and mental health, taking respondents’ socioeconomic status and physical health into account. Mental health is determined by the mental health indicators in the national Health Interview Survey (HIS). The urban residential environment is described by subjective indicators for the participant’s dwelling and neighbourhood present in the HIS and objective indicators for buildings, network infrastructure and green environment developed for the purpose of this project. We assess the mediating role of physical activity, social life, noise and air pollution. In the qualitative part, we conduct walking interviews with Brussels residents to record their subjective well-being in association with their neighbourhood. In the validation part, results from these two approaches are triangulated and evaluated through interviews and focus groups with stakeholders of healthcare and urban planning sectors.

Ethics and dissemination The Privacy Commission of Belgium and ethical committee from University Hospital of Antwerp respectively approved quantitative database merging and qualitative interviewing. We will share project results with a wide audience including the scientific community, policy authorities and civil society through scientific and non-expert communication.

%B BMJ Open %V 10 %8 Feb-02-2021 %G eng %N 2 %R 10.1136/bmjopen-2019-031963 %0 Journal Article %J Int J Mol Sci %D 2020 %T Use of Whole Genome Sequencing Data for a First in Silico Specificity Evaluation of the RT-qPCR Assays Used for SARS-CoV-2 Detection. %A Mathieu Gand %A Kevin Vanneste %A Isabelle Thomas %A Steven Van Gucht %A Arnaud Capron %A Philippe Herman %A Nancy Roosens %A Sigrid C.J. De Keersmaecker %K Betacoronavirus %K Coronavirus Infections %K Databases, Genetic %K Genome, Viral %K Humans %K Open Reading Frames %K Pandemics %K Pneumonia, Viral %K Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide %K Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction %K RNA Replicase %K RNA, Viral %K Sensitivity and Specificity %K whole genome sequencing %X

The current COronaVIrus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic started in December 2019. COVID-19 cases are confirmed by the detection of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in biological samples by RT-qPCR. However, limited numbers of SARS-CoV-2 genomes were available when the first RT-qPCR methods were developed in January 2020 for initial in silico specificity evaluation and to verify whether the targeted loci are highly conserved. Now that more whole genome data have become available, we used the bioinformatics tool SCREENED and a total of 4755 publicly available SARS-CoV-2 genomes, downloaded at two different time points, to evaluate the specificity of 12 RT-qPCR tests (consisting of a total of 30 primers and probe sets) used for SARS-CoV-2 detection and the impact of the virus' genetic evolution on four of them. The exclusivity of these methods was also assessed using the human reference genome and 2624 closely related other respiratory viral genomes. The specificity of the assays was generally good and stable over time. An exception is the first method developed by the China Center for Disease Control and prevention (CDC), which exhibits three primer mismatches present in 358 SARS-CoV-2 genomes sequenced mainly in Europe from February 2020 onwards. The best results were obtained for the assay of Chan et al. (2020) targeting the gene coding for the spiking protein (S). This demonstrates that our user-friendly strategy can be used for a first in silico specificity evaluation of future RT-qPCR tests, as well as verifying that the former methods are still capable of detecting circulating SARS-CoV-2 variants.

%B Int J Mol Sci %V 21 %8 2020 Aug 04 %G eng %N 15 %R 10.3390/ijms21155585 %0 Generic %D 2019 %T Association between Mental Health and the Perception of Residential Stressors in Belgium %A Ingrid Pelgrims %A Eva M De Clercq %A Pauline Hautekiet %A S Trabelsi %A M Guyot %A Isabelle Thomas %A H Keune %A et al. %B 31st annual conference of the International Society for Environmental Epidemiology , on Airs, Waters, Places, Utrecht, The Netherlands, August 2019 %8 2019 aug 1 %G eng %0 Journal Article %J Front Public Health %D 2019 %T Bigger and Better? Representativeness of the Influenza A Surveillance Using One Consolidated Clinical Microbiology Laboratory Data Set as Compared to the Belgian Sentinel Network of Laboratories. %A Van den Wijngaert, Sigi %A Nathalie Bossuyt %A Bridget Ferns %A Busson, Laurent %A Gabriela Serrano %A Wautier, Magali %A Isabelle Thomas %A Matthew Byott %A Yves Dupont %A Eleni Nastouli %A Hallin, Marie %A Zisis Kozlakidis %A Vandenberg, Olivier %X

Infectious diseases remain a serious public health concern globally, while the need for reliable and representative surveillance systems remains as acute as ever. The public health surveillance of infectious diseases uses reported positive results from sentinel clinical laboratories or laboratory networks, to survey the presence of specific microbial agents known to constitute a threat to public health in a given population. This monitoring activity is commonly based on a representative fraction of the microbiology laboratories nationally reporting to a single central reference point. However, in recent years a number of clinical microbiology laboratories (CML) have undergone a process of consolidation involving a shift toward laboratory amalgamation and closer real-time informational linkage. This report aims to investigate whether such merging activities might have a potential impact on infectious diseases surveillance. Influenza data was used from Belgian public health surveillance 2014-2017, to evaluate whether national infection trends could be estimated equally as effectively from only just one centralized CML serving the wider Brussels area (LHUB-ULB). The overall comparison reveals that there is a close correlation and representativeness of the LHUB-ULB data to the national and international data for the same time periods, both on epidemiological and molecular grounds. Notably, the effectiveness of the LHUB-ULB surveillance remains partially subject to local regional variations. A subset of the Influenza samples had their whole genome sequenced so that the observed epidemiological trends could be correlated to molecular observations from the same period, as an added-value proposition. These results illustrate that the real-time integration of high-throughput whole genome sequencing platforms available in consolidated CMLs into the public health surveillance system is not only credible but also advantageous to use for future surveillance and prediction purposes. This can be most effective when implemented for automatic detection systems that might include multiple layers of information and timely implementation of control strategies.

%B Front Public Health %V 7 %8 2019 %G eng %R 10.3389/fpubh.2019.00150 %0 Generic %D 2019 %T Disentangling the Link between Built/Non-Built Environment and Mental Health in Brussels %A Ingrid Pelgrims %A H Keune %A Isabelle Thomas %A H Bastiaens %A R Remmen %A Tim S Nawrot %A S Trabelsi %A M Guyot %A L Lauwers %A Eva M De Clercq %B The International Societies of Exposure Science (ISES) and Indoor Air Quality and Climate (ISIAQ) joint conference on the built, natural, and social environments: impacts on exposures, health and well-being, Kaunas, Lithuania, August 2019 %8 2019 aug 1 %G eng %0 Journal Article %J Euro Surveill %D 2019 %T Epidemiology and genotype 3 subtype dynamics of hepatitis E virus in Belgium, 2010 to 2017. %A Vanessa Suin %A Sofieke Klamer %A Veronik Hutse %A Wautier, Magali %A Marjorie Meurisse %A Mona Abady %A Lamoral, Sophie %A Vera Verburgh %A Isabelle Thomas %A Bernard Brochier %A Lorenzo Subissi %A Steven Van Gucht %K hepatitis E; HEV; surveillance; epidemiology; genotype; Belgium %X

BackgroundHepatitis E virus (HEV) is an emerging public health concern in high-income countries and can cause acute and chronic hepatitis. Reported numbers of indigenously acquired HEV infection have increased in the past decade in many European countries. Since 2010, the National Reference Centre (NRC) for Hepatitis Viruses has been testing samples of suspected hepatitis E cases in Belgium.AimIn this surveillance report, we present the epidemiological trends of symptomatic HEV infections in Belgium, from the distribution by age, sex and geography to the molecular characterisation of the viral strains.MethodSerum samples of suspected cases sent to the NRC between 2010 and 2017 were analysed for the presence of HEV-specific IgM and RNA. Virus was sequenced for genotyping and phylogenetic analysis in all samples containing sufficient viral RNA.ResultsThe NRC reported an increase in the number of samples from suspected cases (from 309 to 2,663 per year) and in the number of laboratory-confirmed hepatitis E cases (from 25 to 117 per year). Among 217 sequenced samples, 92.6% were genotype 3 (HEV-3), followed by 6.5% of genotype 1 and 0.9% of genotype 4. HEV-3 subtype viruses were mainly 3f, 3c and 3e. HEV-3f was the most common subtype until 2015, while HEV-3c became the most common subtype in 2016 and 2017.ConclusionThe increasing trend of HEV diagnoses in Belgium may be largely explained by increased awareness and testing.

%B Euro Surveill %V 24 %8 2019 Mar %G eng %N 10 %R 10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2019.24.10.1800141 %0 Generic %D 2019 %T Impact of the (Non-) Built Environment on Mental Health in Brussels : The NAMED PROJECT %A Ingrid Pelgrims %A H Keune %A Isabelle Thomas %A H Bastiaens %A R Remmen %A Tim S Nawrot %A Eva M De Clercq %X

Introduction

Mental illnesses are a growing problem in modern societies. While the impact of demographic or socioeconomic factors on these pathologies is acknowledged, the interaction with urbanized environment is little understood. This recently launched research project (NAMED) intends to investigate the impact of the (non-)built environment on mental health in Belgium, one of the most urbanized countries in Europe.

 

Methods

Methods will combine quantitative and qualitative research and focus on the country capital Brussels. First, an epidemiological study will be carried out based on the coupling between data from the national health surveys (2008 and 2013) and specifically developed indicators describing each participant's surroundings in terms of (non-)built environment, quality of air and noise.

Second, civil society, stakeholders and local or scientific experts will be consulted by means of multiple case studies, focus groups and extended peer evaluation.

 

Concerning the quantitative part of the project, the objective of the research is to look at the occurrence of various mental health disorders in relation to the individual’s environment. Both subjective and objective measures of the environment will be used.    First, the place of residence of the HIS (Health interview survey) participants will be characterized through a morphological typology of urban fabrics (mapping). This typology describes the Brussels territory based on GIS data and on the intertwinement of  “network morphology”, “built up morphology” and “ vegetation” elements at the regional scale. Secondly, PM 2.5, BC and NO2 exposure levels provided by IRCELINE will be interpolated for each participants residential address, based on the X,Y coordinates.

 

Finally, the environmental perception of the HIS participants will be analyzed through different dimensions: the nuisance at home (including air pollution, bad smell and noise from different sources) and the nuisance in the neighborhood (including volume and speed of traffic, accumulation of rubbish, vandalism, graffiti or deliberate damage of property, lack of access to parks or other green or recreational public places).

 

 

Results

Expected results are numerous. Quantitative and qualitative approaches will complement each other in order to better understand the impact of urban environment on mental health and the multiple underlying determinants involved at the individual level (age, gender, education, income, cultural, lifestyle, stress, social network factors, etc.) or the environmental level (type, quality, aesthetic, accessibility, safety, labelling, etc.). This research will be more generally informative on the question of the health and environmental inequality.

 

Discussion

By gathering experts in social, geographical, medical and epidemiology sciences, this project intends to get a comprehensive overview of the impact of the (non-)built environment on mental health. Conclusions will be relevant for a wide audience and will have various impacts for society. They will notably permit to inform decision makers and suggest concrete, evidence-based actions significant for public health, urban planning and management of nature.

%B Etats généraux de l’air de Bruxelles, Brussels, Belgium, April 2019 %8 2019 april 1 %G eng %0 Generic %D 2018 %T Development of a bioinformatics pipeline for the routine analysis of Influenza whole genome sequencing data %A Qiang Fu %A Raf Winand %A Julien Van Braekel %A Cyril Barbezange %A Veronik Hutse %A Isabelle Thomas %A Steven Van Gucht %A Sigrid C.J. De Keersmaecker %A Nancy Roosens %A Kevin Vanneste %B European Conference on Computational Biology 2018 conference (http://eccb18.org/). 8 – 12 September, 2018, Athens, Greece %G eng %0 Generic %D 2018 %T Evaluation of an isothermal molecular point-of-care method for rapid detection of Respiratory Syncytial Virus and Influneza in routine conditions %A O. Kamel %A A-I. de Moreau %A Isabelle Thomas %A B. Ricci %A I. Beukinga %A L. Blairon %B ESPID 2018 %G eng %0 Generic %D 2018 %T Monitoring of influenza: Whole-Genome Sequencing to provide insights in the disease severity %A Laura Van Poelvoorde %A Sigrid C.J. De Keersmaecker %A Kevin Vanneste %A Steven Van Gucht %A Isabelle Thomas %A Xavier Saelens %A Cyril Barbezange %A Nancy Roosens %B The 6th International Influenza Meeting, 2-4 September 2018 Münster, Germany %G eng %0 Report %D 2018 %T Surveillance des infections à influenza saison 2017-2018 %A Isabelle Thomas %A Cyril Barbezange %A Nathalie Bossuyt %A Natalia Bustos Sierra %A V. Van Casteren %K Grippe %K INFLUENZA %I Sciensano %C Bruxelles %8 20/12/2018 %G eng %M D/2018/14.1470/24 %0 Report %D 2018 %T Surveillance van griepinfecties in seizoen 2017-2018 %A Nathalie Bossuyt %A Natalia Bustos Sierra %A Isabelle Thomas %A Cyril Barbezange %A V. Van Casteren %K Flu %K Griep %K INFLUENZA %I Sciensano %C Brussel %8 20/12/2018 %G eng %M D/2018/14.1470/23 %0 Report %D 2018 %T Virological Surveillance of Influenza in Belgium Season 2017-2018 %A Isabelle Thomas %A Cyril Barbezange %A Steven Van Gucht %A Jeannine Weyckmans %A Ilham Fdillate %A Reinout Van Eycken %A Assia Hamouda %A Nathalie Bossuyt %A Sophie Quoilin %A Viviane Van Casteren %A Yolande Pirson %V ISSN number: D/2018/14.440/40 %G eng %0 Journal Article %J Transbound Emerg Dis %D 2017 %T Belgian Wildlife as Potential Zoonotic Reservoir of Hepatitis E Virus. %A Thiry, D %A Mauroy, A %A Saegerman, C %A Licoppe, A %A Fett, T %A Isabelle Thomas %A Bernard Brochier %A Thiry, E %A Linden, A %X

Hepatitis E is an acute human liver disease in healthy individuals but may become chronic in immunocompromised patients. It is caused by the hepatitis E virus (HEV) and can have a zoonotic origin, particularly in high-income countries. In this study, 383 sera from wild boars were selected for serology; for virological analyses, 69 sera and 61 livers from young wild boars were used. A total of 189 and 235 sera of, respectively, red deer and roe deer were collected for serological analysis. For virological analyses, 84 and 68 sera and 29 and 27 livers from, respectively, red and roe deer were sampled. An apparent seroprevalence of 34% (95% CI 29.71-39.46) was found in wild boars, of 1% (95% CI 0-2.4) in red deer and 3% (95% CI 0.8-4.2) in roe deer. To assess the ELISA screening prevalence, Western blot (WB) analyses were carried out, a receiver operating characteristic curve analysis was performed and different scenarios with varying ELISA specificities relative to WB were analysed. Seroprevalence remained high whatever the scenario in the wild boar population. In wild boar, 4 of 69 sera and 4 of 61 livers were detected as positive for HEV RNA. All sequences obtained from sera belonged to genotype HEV-3. HEV RNA, belonging to genotype HEV-3, was detected in one of 29 red deer livers. Wild boar can be considered as a host reservoir of the virus in Belgium. However, in contrast to the epidemiological role played by them in other countries, the low prevalence in deer makes these species an unlikely reservoir. This evidence needs further investigation to determine in which situation deer can serve as reservoir. These results also raise the question of the dynamics of HEV infection between wild fauna, domestic pigs and humans.

%B Transbound Emerg Dis %V 64 %P 764-773 %8 2017 Jun %G eng %N 3 %1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26518619?dopt=Abstract %R 10.1111/tbed.12435 %0 Report %D 2017 %T Seasonal influenza surveillance (Belgique/België/Belgium) : Résumé saison 2016-2017 - Overzicht seizoen 2016-2017 - Overview season 2016-2017 %A Isabelle Thomas %A Cyril Barbezange %A Steven Van Gucht %A Nathalie Bossuyt %A Natalia Bustos Sierra %A Sophie Quoilin %A Viviane Van Casteren %A Y. Pirson %K 2016 %K 2017 %K Belgium %K overview season %K Seasonal influenza surveillance %I WIV-ISP %C Brussels, Belgium %P 27 %8 06/2017 %G eng %M D/2017/2505/11 %0 Generic %D 2016 %T Human influenza surveillance in Belgium %A Isabelle Thomas %K Belgium %K health %K Human %K INFLUENZA %K Surveillance %B One health seminar %I NA %C NA %8 0/0/2016 %G eng %N WIV-ISP %1 37205 %2 25/05/2016 %0 Generic %D 2016 %T Impact of green/blue spaces on specific morbidity and cause-specific mortality in Belgium: the GRESP-HEALTH project %A Mariska Bauwelinck %A Casas,L. %A An Van Nieuwenhuyse %A Deboosere,P. %A Isabelle Thomas %A Nawrot,T. %A Bouland,C. %A Nemery,B. %K Belgium %K European %K Impact %K morbidity %K mortality %K ON %B European OneHealth/EcoHealth workshop %I NA %C NA %8 6/10/2016 %G eng %N Belgian Science Policy %1 2632 %2 6-7/10/2016 %0 Journal Article %J Euro.Surveill %D 2016 %T Improving influenza virological surveillance in Europe: strain-based reporting of antigenic and genetic characterisation data, 11 European countries, influenza season 2013/14 %A Broberg,E. %A Hungnes,O. %A Schweiger,B. %A Prosenc,K. %A Daniels,R. %A Guiomar,R. %A Ikonen,N. %A Kossyvakis,A. %A Pozo,F. %A Puzelli,S. %A Isabelle Thomas %A Waters,A. %A Wiman,A. %A Meijer,A. %K a %K age %K AGE GROUP %K AGE GROUPS %K Age-group %K ALL %K Area %K article %K Case %K composition %K Control %K Countries %K data %K Decision %K Decision Making %K disease %K ecdc %K ECONOMIC %K electronic %K Europe %K European %K European countries %K Genetic %K Group %K INFLUENZA %K IS %K journal %K LEVEL %K levels %K mechanism %K p %K Patient %K patients %K pilot %K pilot study %K prevention %K proportion %K SELECTED %K study %K Surveillance %K Sweden %K System %K vaccine %K VIRUS %K Viruses %X Influenza antigenic and genetic characterisation data are crucial for influenza vaccine composition decision making. Previously, aggregate data were reported to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control by European Union/European Economic Area (EU/EEA) countries. A system for collecting case-specific influenza antigenic and genetic characterisation data was established for the 2013/14 influenza season. In a pilot study, 11 EU/EEA countries reported through the new mechanism. We demonstrated feasibility of reporting strain-based antigenic and genetic data and ca 10% of influenza virus-positive specimens were selected for further characterisation. Proportions of characterised virus (sub)types were similar to influenza virus circulation levels. The main genetic clades were represented by A/StPetersburg/27/2011(H1N1)pdm09 and A/Texas/50/2012(H3N2). A(H1N1)pdm09 viruses were more prevalent in age groups (by years) < 1 (65%; p = 0.0111), 20-39 (50%; p = 0.0046) and 40-64 (55%; p = 0.00001) while A(H3N2) viruses were most prevalent in those >/= 65 years (62%*; p = 0.0012). Hospitalised patients in the age groups 6-19 years (67%; p = 0.0494) and >/= 65 years (52%; p = 0.0005) were more frequently infected by A/Texas/50/2012 A(H3N2)-like viruses compared with hospitalised cases in other age groups. Strain-based reporting enabled deeper understanding of influenza virus circulation among hospitalised patients and substantially improved the reporting of virus characterisation data. Therefore, strain-based reporting of readily available data is recommended to all reporting countries within the EU/EEA %B Euro.Surveill %V 21 %8 13/10/2016 %G eng %N 41 %1 37172 %R http://dx.doi.org/10.2807/1560-7917.ES.2016.21.41.30370 %0 Generic %D 2016 %T Influenza surveillance, vaccinatie en antivirale therapie %A Isabelle Thomas %K EN %K infecties %K INFLUENZA %K Surveillance %K vaccinatie %B Virale infecties bij immunocompromitteerde patiënten. %I NA %C NA %8 0/0/2016 %G eng %N AZ Sint-Jan %1 39308 %2 22/10/2016 %0 Report %D 2016 %T Virological surveillance of influenza in Belgium season 2015-2016 %A Isabelle Thomas %A Cyril Barbezange %A Hombrouck,A. %A Steven Van Gucht %A Weyckmans,J. %A Ullens,L. %A Abady,M. %A Fdillate,I. %A Nathalie Bossuyt %A Viviane Van Casteren %A Y. Pirson %K Belgium %K INFLUENZA %K Surveillance %I Johan Peeters/WIV-ISP %C Bruxelles %P . %8 0/0/2016 %@ D/2016/2505/40 %G eng %1 37183 %0 Conference Proceedings %D 2015 %T Alerte : l'épidémie de grippe atteint son pic. %A Isabelle Thomas %E Le Ligueur %K de %K Grippe %8 29/1/2015 %G eng %1 37062 %0 Conference Proceedings %D 2015 %T Epidémie de grippe. %A Isabelle Thomas %E RTBF - Matin vivacité %K de %K Grippe %8 7/10/2015 %G eng %1 37064 %0 Conference Proceedings %D 2015 %T Épidémie de grippe: Vaccination. %A Isabelle Thomas %E RTL %K de %K Grippe %K Vaccination %8 6/10/2015 %G eng %1 37065 %0 Report %D 2015 %T Influenza virological surveillance in Belgium season 2014-2015. %A Hombrouck,A. %A Nathalie Bossuyt %A Viviane Van Casteren %A Steven Van Gucht %A Isabelle Thomas %K Belgium %K INFLUENZA %K Surveillance %I WHO %C . %P . %8 0/0/2015 %G eng %1 39174 %0 Conference Proceedings %D 2015 %T Que faire face à l'épidémie de grippe. %A Isabelle Thomas %E RTBF - Forum du Midi %K de %K Face %K Grippe %8 2/2/2015 %G eng %1 37066 %0 Generic %D 2015 %T Vaccine effectiveness estimates in preventing laboratory-confirmed mild and moderate-to-severe influenza in the Belgian population during the last 3 seasons. %A Hombrouck,A. %A Viviane Van Casteren %A Steven Van Gucht %A Sophie Quoilin %A Françoise Wuillaume %A Isabelle Thomas %A Nathalie Bossuyt %K Belgian %K Belgian population %K de %K ET %K INFLUENZA %K Laboratory-confirmed %K Maladies infectieuse %K Mild %K POPULATION %K Seasons %K Surveillance %K vaccine %B Séminaire Diagnostic et surveillance des maladies infectieuses. %I NA %C NA %8 0/0/2015 %G eng %N WIV-ISP %1 38230 %2 21/05/2015 %0 Report %D 2015 %T Virological Surveillance of Influenza in Belgium Season 2014-2015. %A Isabelle Thomas %A Hombrouck,A. %A Steven Van Gucht %A Weyckmans,J. %A K. El Kadaani %A Abady,M. %A Fdillate,I. %A Nathalie Bossuyt %A Viviane Van Casteren %A Y. Pirson %K Belgium %K INFLUENZA %K Surveillance %I WIV-ISP %C Brussels %P . %8 0/0/2015 %@ D/2015/2505/60 %G eng %1 37049 %0 Conference Proceedings %D 2015 %T Wekelijkse nieuwsberichten en perscommuniqués in verband met de evolutie van de seizoensgriepepidemie in België. %A Isabelle Thomas %A Hombrouck,A. %A Steven Van Gucht %K België %K de %K EN %8 0/0/2015 %G eng %1 37058 %0 Journal Article %J Vet Microbiol %D 2014 %T Estimation of hepatitis E virus (HEV) pig seroprevalence using ELISA and Western blot and comparison between human and pig HEV sequences in Belgium. %A Thiry, Damien %A Mauroy, Axel %A Saegerman, Claude %A Isabelle Thomas %A Wautier, Magali %A Miry, Cora %A Czaplicki, Guy %A Berkvens, Dirk %A Praet, Nicolas %A van der Poel, Wim %A Cariolet, Roland %A Bernard Brochier %A Thiry, Etienne %K Animals %K Belgium %K Blotting, Western %K Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay %K Genotype %K Hepatitis E %K Hepatitis E virus %K Humans %K Phylogeny %K Sensitivity and Specificity %K Seroepidemiologic Studies %K Swine %K Swine Diseases %X

Zoonotic transmission of hepatitis E virus (HEV) is of special concern, particularly in high income countries were waterborne infections are less frequent than in developing countries. High HEV seroprevalences can be found in European pig populations. The aims of this study were to obtain prevalence data on HEV infection in swine in Belgium and to phylogenetically compare Belgian human HEV sequences with those obtained from swine. An ELISA screening prevalence of 73% (95% CI 68.8-77.5) was determined in Belgian pigs and a part of the results were re-evaluated by Western blot (WB). A receiver operating characteristic curve analysis was performed and scenarios varying the ELISA specificity relative to WB were analysed. The seroprevalences estimated by the different scenarios ranged between 69 and 81% and are in agreement with the high exposure of the European pig population to HEV. Pig HEV sequences were genetically compared to those detected in humans in Belgium and a predominance of genotype 3 subtype f was shown in both swine and humans. The high HEV seroprevalence in swine and the close phylogenetic relationships between pig and human HEV sequences further support the risk for zoonotic transmission of HEV between humans and pigs.

%B Vet Microbiol %V 172 %P 407-14 %8 2014 Aug 27 %G eng %N 3-4 %1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24975642?dopt=Abstract %R 10.1016/j.vetmic.2014.06.004 %0 Journal Article %J Diagn Microbiol Infect Dis %D 2014 %T Evaluation of 3 rapid influenza diagnostic tests during the 2012-2013 epidemic: influences of subtype and viral load. %A Busson, Laurent %A Hallin, Marie %A Isabelle Thomas %A De Foor, Marc %A Vandenberg, Olivier %K ADOLESCENT %K Adult %K Aged %K Aged, 80 and over %K Belgium %K Child %K Child, Preschool %K Diagnostic Tests, Routine %K Disease Outbreaks %K Female %K Humans %K Infant %K Infant, Newborn %K Influenza A Virus, H1N1 Subtype %K Influenza A Virus, H3N2 Subtype %K Influenza, Human %K Male %K middle aged %K Prospective Studies %K Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction %K Sensitivity and Specificity %K Viral Load %K Young adult %X

This article evaluates the performance of 3 rapid influenza diagnostic tests (RIDTs), in correlation with the influenza subtypes and the viral load. A total of 236 samples were prospectively analyzed with BinaxNOW Influenza A/B, Directigen EZ Flu A and B, and bioNexia Influenza A+B. The results were compared to cell cultures and real-time polymerase chain reaction. Positive samples were further subtyped. Thirty-seven samples were positive for influenza A, and 57, for influenza B. For A(H1N1), the sensitivities were 71.42% for BinaxNOW, 78.57% for Directigen, and 67.85% for bioNexia. Eight samples were positive for A(H3N2), and only the bioNexia test had 1 false-negative result. Lowest sensitivities were observed for influenza B/Yamagata, (56.86% for BinaxNOW and Directigen and 39.21% for bioNexia). The 3 evaluated RIDTs were more efficient at detecting influenza A(H3N2) than for A(H1N1) and B/Yamagata. Highest viral loads in the samples were associated with better rate of detection.

%B Diagn Microbiol Infect Dis %V 80 %P 287-91 %8 2014 Dec %G eng %N 4 %1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25241638?dopt=Abstract %R 10.1016/j.diagmicrobio.2014.08.015 %0 Generic %D 2014 %T NeXSplorer.iph: Development of next generation sequencing data analysis tools in support of a fast response for public health and food chain safety %A Sigrid C.J. De Keersmaecker %A Sophie Bertrand %A Wesley Mattheus %A Philippe Herman %A Katelijne Dierick %A N Botteldoorn %A Sarah Denayer %A Steven Van Gucht %A Isabelle Thomas %A Deforce,D. %A Marchal,K. %A Nancy Roosens %K a %K analysi %K analysis %K application %K applications %K bioinformatics %K data %K Development %K food %K Food Chain %K GMO %K health %K NGS %K public %K public health %K Public-health %B Applications of Next Generation Sequencing for public health %I NA %C NA %8 0/0/2014 %G eng %N =WIV-ISP %1 38637 %2 10/10/2014 %0 Journal Article %J J Wildl Dis %D 2014 %T No evidence of coronavirus infection by reverse transcriptase-PCR in bats in Belgium. %A Steven Van Gucht %A Nazé, Florence %A El Kadaani, Karim %A Bauwens, Danielle %A Aurélie Francart %A Bernard Brochier %A Françoise Wuillaume %A Isabelle Thomas %K Animals %K Belgium %K Chiroptera %K Coronavirus %K Coronavirus Infections %K Feces %K Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction %X

No coronavirus was detected by PCR in lung and intestine samples of 100 bats, mostly common pipistrelles (Pipistrellus pipistrellus), collected dead between 2008 and 2013 for rabies surveillance in Belgium. The negative results contrast with the high prevalence of coronaviruses detected in fecal pellets from live-captured bats in some European countries.

%B J Wildl Dis %V 50 %P 969-71 %8 2014 Oct %G eng %N 4 %1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25098304?dopt=Abstract %R 10.7589/2013-10-269 %0 Generic %D 2014 %T ORIENT-EXPRESS in times of crisis %A Sylvia Broeders %A Sigrid C.J. De Keersmaecker %A Steven Van Gucht %A Isabelle Thomas %A Vanessa Suin %A Katelijne Dierick %A N Botteldoorn %A Steven Van Borm %A Nancy Roosens %K application %K applications %K arbovirus %K crisis %K detection %K gasto-intestinal parasites %K GMO %K health %K Luminex %K NGS %K public %K public health %K Public-health %K qPCR %K time %K Times %B Applications of Next Generation Sequencing for public health %I NA %C NA %8 0/0/2014 %G eng %N WIV-ISP %1 4873 %2 10/10/2014 %0 Report %D 2014 %T Virological Surveillance of Influenza in Belgium Season 2013-2014. National influenza Centre (WHO). %A Isabelle Thomas %A Hombrouck,A. %A Steven Van Gucht %A Weyckmans,J. %A Bauwens,D. %A K. El Kadaani %A Abady,M. %A Fdillate,I. %A Nathalie Bossuyt %A Viviane Van Casteren %A Y. Pirson %K Belgium %K INFLUENZA %K national %K Surveillance %K WHO %X NA %I WIV-ISP %C Brussels %P 23 %8 0/0/2014 %@ D/2014/2505/65 %G eng %1 39214 %0 Journal Article %J J.Clin.Microbiol. %D 2013 %T Duplex molecular assay intended for point-of-care diagnosis of influenza A/B virus infection299 %A Wu,L.T. %A Isabelle Thomas %A Curran,M.D. %A Ellis,J.S. %A Parmar,S. %A Goel,N. %A Sharma,P.I. %A Allain,J.P. %A Lee,H.H. %K a %K acid %K alternative %K an %K article %K Belgium %K Clinical %K Common %K comparing %K Control %K detection %K Development %K Diagnosis %K Diagnostics %K disease %K electronic %K Genome %K health %K identification %K im %K INFECTION %K INFLUENZA %K initiation %K intervention %K IS %K journal %K Laboratories %K management %K measure %K measures %K medical %K method %K Molecular %K observed %K ON %K pathogen %K performance %K Point of care %K present %K public %K public health %K Public-health %K reducing %K Respiratory %K result %K results %K Sample %K SB - IM %K SENSITIVITY %K Sensitivity and Specificity %K specificity %K Swab %K System %K technology %K Test %K TESTING %K tests %K time %K treatment %K United Kingdom %K United-kingdom %K Universities %K university %K use %K VIRUS %K Viruses %X Early diagnosis and management of influenza virus infection directly correlates with the effectiveness in disease control. Current molecular influenza virus tests were designed for use in diagnostic testing facilities, where sophisticated equipment and highly trained technicians are available. A longer turnaround time for the centralized testing than when testing near the sample source could delay the initiation of medical intervention, thereby reducing the efficacy of antiviral treatment. The new assay, the SAMBA (simple amplification-based assay) Flu duplex test, is a dipstick-based molecular assay developed to provide a simple, accurate, and cost-effective solution for the diagnosis of influenza A/B viruses intended for near-patient testing. The test presents an alternative format of influenza virus molecular testing that utilizes isothermal amplification and visual detection of nucleic acid on a test strip. The entire test procedure (extraction, amplification, and detection) is integrated into an enclosed semiautomated system. Analytically, the SAMBA Flu duplex test detects 95 and 85 copies of viral genomes for influenza A and B viruses, respectively, with no cross-reactivity observed against other common respiratory pathogens. The clinical performance was established by blind testing of 328 nasal/throat and nasopharyngeal swab specimens from the United Kingdom and Belgium and comparing the results with the quantitative reverse transcription-PCR method routinely used in two public health laboratories. The SAMBA Flu duplex test showed a clinical sensitivity and specificity of 100% and 97.9% for influenza virus A and 100% and 100% for influenza virus B. The test provides a new technology that could facilitate simple and timely identification of influenza virus infection, potentially resulting in more efficient control measures %B J.Clin.Microbiol. %V 51 %P 3031 - 3038 %8 0/9/2013 %G eng %N 9 %1 38474 %& 3031 %R http://dx.doi.org/10.1128/JCM.00740-13 %0 Generic %D 2013 %T Emergence of the deadly Middle East Respiratory Syndrome coronavirus: are bats to blame? %A Steven Van Gucht %A Françoise Wuillaume %A K. El Kadaani %A A. Francart %A Bernard Brochier %A Naze,F. %A Isabelle Thomas %K bat %K bats %K Belgian %K Congresses %K Coronavirus %K disease %K Middle East %K Respiratory %K Societies %K Society %B Fifth Belgian Wildlife Disease Society (BWDS) Congress %I NA %C NA %8 18/10/2013 %G eng %N Belgian Wildlife Disease Society (BWDS) %1 38421 %2 18/10/2013 %0 Journal Article %J Transpl.Infect.Dis. %D 2012 %T Hepatitis E virus: an underdiagnosed cause of chronic hepatitis in renal transplant recipients31090 %A Halleux,D. %A Kanaan,N. %A B. Kabamba Mukadi %A Isabelle Thomas %A Hassoun,Z. %K a %K an %K article %K AS %K Belgium %K Brussels %K Case %K cause %K chronic %K de %K Diagnosis %K e %K electronic %K Hepatitis %K Hepatitis E %K Hepatitis E virus %K im %K INFECTION %K IS %K journal %K Literature %K Patient %K patients %K reducing %K RENAL %K report %K REVIEW %K SB - IM %K Therapy %K VIRUS %X Hepatitis E virus (HEV) infection can evolve to chronic hepatitis in immunocompromised patients leading to rapidly progressive cirrhosis. Proper diagnosis is therefore important, as reducing immunosuppressive therapy can allow clearance of the virus. We report a case of chronic HEV infection in a renal transplant recipient that went undiagnosed for many years, discuss the therapeutic options, and review the current available literature %B Transpl.Infect.Dis. %V 14 %P 99 - 102 %8 0/2/2012 %G eng %N 1 %1 38219 %& 99 %R http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1399-3062.2011.00677.x %0 Journal Article %J Acta Clin.Belg. %D 2012 %T Prospective evaluation of Coris Influ-A&B Respi-Strip and of BinaxNOW Influenza A&B assay against viral culture and real-time PCR assay for detection of 2009 pandemic influenza A/H1N1v in Belgian patients33848 %A Reynders,M. %A De Foor,M. %A Maaroufi,Y. %A Isabelle Thomas %A Vergison,A. %A Debulpaep,S. %A Vandenberg,O. %A Crokaert,F. %K 2009 %K Adult %K adults %K age %K article %K Belgian %K Belgium %K Brussels %K Bruxelles %K CHILDREN %K culture %K de %K Design %K detection %K Diagnosis %K differences %K EVALUATION %K hospital %K hospitals %K illness %K illnesses %K im %K INFLUENZA %K IS %K journal %K Less %K microbiologie %K observed %K paediatric %K pandemic %K Patient %K patients %K PCR %K performance %K Print %K public %K real time PCR %K Real-time PCR %K Respiratory %K result %K results %K Sample %K Samples %K SB - IM %K SENSITIVITY %K Sensitivity and Specificity %K specific %K specificity %K Still %K study %K study design %K Swab %K Test %K tests %K Type %X PURPOSE: Evaluation of the performance of two rapid (15') antigen detection tests (RAT), BinaxNOW Influenza A&B and Coris Influ-A&B Respi-Strip for the detection of A(H1N1)v2009. STUDY DESIGN: Between July 2009 and November 2009, 4105 respiratory specimens from patients with influenza-like illness attending seven public hospitals in Brussels were prospectively examined by two immunochromatographic RAT, followed by viral culture and/or specific real-time RT-PCR. RESULTS: Samples consisted predominantly of nasopharyngeal aspirates (NPA-41%), nasopharyngeal (NPS-37%) and throat swabs (TS-14%). The sensitivity and specificity of Coris RAT and BinaxNOW RAT were 36.6% and 99.7%, and 47% and 98.7% respectively compared to culture; and 33.7% and 99.6%; and 46.5% and 98.8% compared to RT-PCR. Significant differences in sensitivity could be observed when splitting up the samples by sample type and patient's age. NPA gave by far the highest sensitivities: 51.1- 62% for Coris compared to culture and 62.6-78.4% for BinaxNOW. Sensitivities in paediatric NPS varied less between different hospitals (34-41.9%) being still much higher than in adult NPS (11.4-20%). TS resulted in unsatisfactory results: 13% sensitivity in children and 10.5% in adults. CONCLUSIONS: Both RAT showed excellent specificities, but insufficient sensitivities. Consequently, negative results should be confirmed. NPA are clearly superior to NPS orTS, and they stay the sample of choice for viral diagnosis %B Acta Clin.Belg. %V 67 %P 94 - 98 %8 0/3/2012 %G eng %N 2 %1 38333 %& 94 %0 Journal Article %J Acta Clin Belg %D 2012 %T Recommendations in the event of a suspected transfusion-related acute lung injury (TRALI). %A P Van der Linden %A M Lambermont %A AM. Dierick %A R Hübner %A Y Benoit %A D De Backer %A R De Paep %A A Ferrant %A Latinne, D %A L Muylle %A D Selleslag %A B Szabo %A Isabelle Thomas %A Vandekerckhove,B. %A V Deneys %K Acute Lung Injury %K Antibodies, Antineutrophil Cytoplasmic %K Autoantibodies %K Belgium %K Blood Donors %K Diagnosis, Differential %K HLA Antigens %K Humans %K Oxygen Inhalation Therapy %K Positive-Pressure Respiration %K Respiratory Distress Syndrome, Adult %K Transfusion Reaction %X

The following recommendations, which aim at improving the clinical diagnosis ofTRALI and the laboratory investigations that can support it, were drawn up by a working group of the Superior Health Council. TRALI is a complication of blood transfusion that is both serious and underreported. Systematic reporting may help to develop preventive actions. Therefore, the Superior Health Council recommends that there should be a more stringent surveillance of patients who receive a blood component transfusion. The clinician should pay very close attention to any change in the patient's respiratory status (cf. dyspnoea and arterial desaturation), which should be notified systematically to the haemovigilance contact person in the hospital.

%B Acta Clin Belg %V 67 %8 2012 May-Jun %G eng %N 3 %& 201 %R 10.2143/ACB.67.3.2062656 %0 Journal Article %J Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis %D 2012 %T Viral aetiology of influenza-like illness in Belgium during the influenza A(H1N1)2009 pandemic. %A Hombrouck, A %A Martine Sabbe %A Viviane Van Casteren %A Françoise Wuillaume %A D Hue %A Reynders, M %A Gérard, C %A Bernard Brochier %A Van Eldere, J %A Van Ranst, M %A Isabelle Thomas %K ADOLESCENT %K Adult %K Age Distribution %K Aged %K Aged, 80 and over %K Belgium %K Child %K Child, Preschool %K Female %K Humans %K Infant %K Infant, Newborn %K Male %K middle aged %K Respiratory Tract Diseases %K Virus Diseases %K Viruses %K Young adult %X

The purpose of this investigation was to determine the proportion of influenza-like illness (ILI) attributable to specific viruses during the influenza A(H1N1)2009 pandemic and to describe the demographic and clinical characteristics of ILI due to respiratory viruses in Belgium. Nasopharyngeal swabs were collected from ILI patients by general practitioners (GPs) and paediatricians (PediSurv) and analysed for viruses. Of 139 samples collected from children <5 years of age by PediSurv, 86 were positive, including 28 influenza (20%), 27 respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) (19%), 21 rhinovirus (17%), 12 human metapneumovirus (hMPV) (9%) and ten parainfluenza virus (PIV) (7%). Of 810 samples received from GPs, 426 were influenza (53%). Of 312 influenza-negative samples, 41 were rhinovirus (13%), 13 RSV (4%), 11 PIV (4%) and three hMPV (1%). Influenza mostly affected the 6-15 years old age group. Other respiratory viruses were commonly detected in the youngest patients. Similar clinical symptoms were associated with different respiratory viruses. Influenza A(H1N1)2009 was the most detected virus in ILI patients during the 2009-2010 winter, suggesting a good correlation between ILI case definition and influenza diagnosis. However, in children under 5 years of age, other respiratory viruses such as RSV were frequently diagnosed. Furthermore, our findings do not suggest that the early occurrence of the influenza A(H1N1)2009 epidemic impacted the RSV epidemic in Belgium.

%B Eur J Clin Microbiol Infect Dis %V 31 %P 999-1007 %8 2012 Jun %G eng %N 6 %1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21901635?dopt=Abstract %& 999 %R 10.1007/s10096-011-1398-4 %0 Journal Article %J BMC.Fam.Pract. %D 2011 %T Clinical prediction rules combining signs, symptoms and epidemiological context to distinguish influenza from influenza-like illnesses in primary care: a cross sectional study36562 %A Michiels,B. %A Isabelle Thomas %A Van Royen,P. %A Coenen,S. %K a %K Absence %K additional %K an %K Antwerp %K Area %K Area Under Curve %K article %K Belgium %K care %K Clinical %K CONTACT %K CONTACTS %K Context %K cross sectional %K cross sectional studies %K Cross-sectional %K cross-sectional studies %K Diagnosis %K Diagnosis,Differential %K electronic %K epidemic %K Epidemics %K EPIDEMIOLOGICAL %K epidemiology %K general %K General practice %K GENERAL PRACTITIONER %K general practitioners %K General-practice %K Humans %K illness %K illnesses %K im %K Increase %K Increases %K INFECTION %K infections %K INFLUENZA %K Influenza,Human %K INFORMATION %K IS %K isolation & purification %K IT %K journal %K Less %K Likelihood %K method %K methods %K MODEL %K Objective %K ON %K Orthomyxoviridae %K Patient %K patients %K performance %K period %K Point of care %K Practice %K practitioner %K Practitioners %K Predictive Value of Tests %K primary care %K Primary Health Care %K Ratio %K Ratios %K Research %K Research Support %K Respiratory %K result %K results %K Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction %K Roc Curve %K Sample %K Samples %K SB - IM %K SENSITIVITY %K Sensitivity and Specificity %K sentinel %K specific %K specificity %K statistics & numerical data %K Still %K study %K Swab %K Symptom %K Symptoms %K Temperature %K Test %K tests %K time %K Times %K Universities %K university %K variables %K virology %K VIRUS %K Winter %X BACKGROUND: During an influenza epidemic prompt diagnosis of influenza is important. This diagnosis however is still essentially based on the interpretation of symptoms and signs by general practitioners. No single symptom is specific enough to be useful in differentiating influenza from other respiratory infections. Our objective is to formulate prediction rules for the diagnosis of influenza with the best diagnostic performance, combining symptoms, signs and context among patients with influenza-like illness. METHODS: During five consecutive winter periods (2002-2007) 138 sentinel general practitioners sampled (naso- and oropharyngeal swabs) 4597 patients with an influenza-like illness (ILI) and registered their symptoms and signs, general characteristics and contextual information. The samples were analysed by a DirectigenFlu-A&B and RT-PCR tests. 4584 records were useful for further analysis.Starting from the most relevant variables in a Generalized Estimating Equations (GEE) model, we calculated the area under the Receiver Operating Characteristic curve (ROC AUC), sensitivity, specificity and likelihood ratios for positive (LR+) and negative test results (LR-) of single and combined signs, symptoms and context taking into account pre-test and post-test odds. RESULTS: In total 52.6% (2409/4584) of the samples were positive for influenza virus: 64% (2066/3212) during and 25% (343/1372) pre/post an influenza epidemic. During and pre/post an influenza epidemic the LR+ of 'previous flu-like contacts', 'coughing', 'expectoration on the first day of illness' and 'body temperature above 37.8 degrees C' is 3.35 (95%CI 2.67-4.03) and 1.34 (95%CI 0.97-1.72), respectively. During and pre/post an influenza epidemic the LR- of 'coughing' and 'a body temperature above 37.8 degrees C' is 0.34 (95%CI 0.27-0.41) and 0.07 (95%CI 0.05-0.08), respectively. CONCLUSIONS: Ruling out influenza using clinical and contextual information is easier than ruling it in. Outside an influenza epidemic the absence of cough and fever (> 37,8 degrees C) makes influenza 14 times less likely in ILI patients. During an epidemic the presence of 'previous flu-like contacts', cough, 'expectoration on the first day of illness' and fever (>37,8 degrees C) increases the likelihood for influenza threefold. The additional diagnostic value of rapid point of care tests especially for confirming influenza still has to be established %B BMC.Fam.Pract. %V 12 %P 4 %8 0/0/2011 %G eng %1 38299 %& 4 %R http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/1471-2296-12-4 %0 Journal Article %J Soc.Sci.Med. %D 2011 %T Does country influence the health burden of informal care? An international comparison between Belgium and Great Britain36539 %A Dujardin,C. %A Farfan-Portet,M.I. %A Mitchell,R. %A Popham,F. %A Isabelle Thomas %A Lorant,V. %K a %K Activity %K Adult %K an %K Area %K Areas %K article %K AS %K association %K Belgium %K burden %K care %K Caregivers %K Censuses %K Comparative Study %K Comparison %K Cost of Illness %K Countries %K de %K effect %K effects %K electronic %K European %K European countries %K Female %K Great Britain %K health %K Health status %K Health-status %K home care %K Humans %K im %K informal care %K International %K IS %K journal %K Logistic %K Logistic Models %K logistic regression %K Logistic-regression %K Long-term %K Male %K methodology %K middle aged %K ON %K Paper %K Patient %K patients %K POLICIES %K POLICY %K regression %K Research %K Research Design %K Research Support %K residence %K result %K results %K SB - IM %K Self Report %K Social Environment %K status %K study %K Type %K US %X The aim of this paper is to determine whether the association between the provision of informal care and the health status of caregivers is affected by the country of residence. We focus on two European countries, Belgium and Great Britain, and develop a methodology, which consists of matching a subset of areas from Britain with areas in Belgium that are demographically and socioeconomically similar. These pairs of areas are then used as fixed effects in logistic regressions of poor health. This allows us to take into account the influence of area type on health and to remove the influence of these local contextual characteristics from the estimated country effects. Results suggest that, although caregiving is more prevalent in Britain, the health burden associated with heavy caregiving activities is lower in Britain than in Belgium. This may be explained by the better targeting of long-term home care policies towards more severely dependent patients in Britain than in Belgium %B Soc.Sci.Med. %V 73 %P 1123 - 1132 %8 0/10/2011 %G eng %N 8 %1 36539 %& 1123 %R http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2011.07.016 %0 Journal Article %J Nephrol.Dial.Transplant. %D 2011 %T Immunogenicity of an adjuvanted 2009 pandemic influenza A (H1N1) vaccine in haemodialysed patients %A Labriola,L. %A Hombrouck,A. %A Marechal,C. %A Steven Van Gucht %A Bernard Brochier %A Isabelle Thomas %A Jadoul,M. %A Goubau,P. %K 0 %K 2009 %K Adjuvants,Immunologic %K administration & dosage %K Adult %K Aged %K Aged,80 and over %K an %K antibodies %K Antibody %K article %K AS %K at %K Belgium %K Brussels %K Case-Control Studies %K Comparative Study %K Control %K de %K electronic %K Female %K Follow-Up Studies %K GM %K Hemagglutination Inhibition Tests %K High risk %K HIGH-RISK %K Humans %K im %K immunology %K Increase %K INFLUENZA %K Influenza A Virus,H1N1 Subtype %K Influenza Vaccines %K Influenza,Human %K IS %K journal %K Kidney Failure,Chronic %K LEVEL %K Male %K males %K method %K methods %K middle aged %K observed %K ON %K p %K pandemic %K Pandemics %K Patient %K patients %K prevention & control %K Prognosis %K Prospective Studies %K Renal Dialysis %K result %K results %K SB - IM %K Still %K study %K Survival Rate %K Therapy %K Vaccination %K vaccine %K vaccines %K Young adult %X BACKGROUND: The 2009 pandemic of influenza A (H1N1) prompted an urgent worldwide vaccination campaign, especially of high-risk subjects, such as maintenance haemodialysis (HD) patients. Still the immunogenicity of the pandemic A (H1N1) vaccine in HD patients is unknown. METHODS: We prospectively studied the immunogenicity of a monovalent adjuvanted influenza A/California/2009 (H1N1) vaccine (Pandemrix, GSK Biologicals, Rixensart, Belgium) in HD patients and controls. Antibody level was measured using a seroneutralization assay before (D(0)) and 30 days after (D(30)) a single 3.75 mug vaccine dose. Specimens were tested in quadruplicates. Geometric mean (GM) antibody titers were determined in each subject at D(0) and D(30). Seroconversion was defined as an increase in GM titers by a factor 4 or more. RESULTS: Fifty-three adult HD patients [aged 71 +/- 10, 58.5% males, on HD for a median of 38 (3 - 146) months] and 32 control subjects (aged 47.3 +/- 14, 31.3% males) were analyzed. Baseline GM titers were similar in HD patients and controls [7.9 (6.6 - 9.6) vs 10 (6 - 17); p = 0.69]. Seroconversion was observed in 30 (93.8%) controls and 34 (64.2%) HD patients (p = 0.002). In addition, GM titers at D(30) were significantly higher in controls than in HD patients [373 ( %B Nephrol.Dial.Transplant. %V 26 %P 1424 - 1428 %8 1/4/2011 %G eng %N 4 %1 36552 %& 1424 %R http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/ndt/gfq782 %0 Journal Article %J Clin.J.Am.Soc.Nephrol. %D 2011 %T Influenza A/H1N1 vaccine in patients treated by kidney transplant or dialysis: a cohort study36521 %A Broeders,N.E. %A Hombrouck,A. %A Lemy,A. %A Wissing,K.M. %A Racape,J. %A Gastaldello,K. %A Massart,A. %A Steven Van Gucht %A Weichselbaum,L. %A De Mul,A. %A Bernard Brochier %A Isabelle Thomas %A Abramowicz,D. %K 0 %K 2009 %K a %K administration & dosage %K Adult %K adverse effects %K Aged %K Agent %K Agents %K alpha-Tocopherol %K Analysis of Variance %K antibodies %K Antibodies,Neutralizing %K Antibodies,Viral %K Antibody %K Antigens %K article %K Belgium %K blood %K Brussels %K Case-Control Studies %K Chi-Square Distribution %K Class %K clinic %K Cohort Studies %K Cohort study %K Combination %K Confidence Intervals %K Control %K data %K Design %K disease %K DRUG %K Drug Combinations %K electronic %K Female %K GM %K Histocompatibility Antigens Class I %K Histocompatibility Antigens Class II %K hospital %K Humans %K i %K im %K Immunization %K immunology %K Immunosuppressive Agents %K improve %K Increase %K INFLUENZA %K Influenza A Virus,H1N1 Subtype %K Influenza Vaccines %K Influenza,Human %K interval %K IS %K journal %K Kidney %K Kidney Failure,Chronic %K Kidney Transplantation %K Luminex %K Male %K measurement %K measurements %K middle aged %K objectives %K ODDS RATIO %K p %K pandemic %K PARTICIPANTS %K Patient %K patients %K Polysorbates %K POPULATION %K Populations %K prevalence %K prevention & control %K proportion %K Ratio %K Ratios %K recommendation %K Recommendations %K regression analysis %K RENAL %K Renal Dialysis %K Research %K Research Support %K response %K result %K results %K SB - IM %K serum %K Squalene %K study %K surgery %K technology %K Therapy %K Time Factors %K Treatment Outcome %K Vaccination %K vaccine %K vaccines %K virology %X BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: In 2009, the pandemic influenza A/H1N1 accounted for worldwide recommendations about vaccination. There are few data concerning the immunogenicity or the security of the adjuvanted-A/H1N1 vaccine in transplanted and hemodialyzed patients. DESIGN, SETTING, PARTICIPANTS, & MEASUREMENTS: Sera from 21 controls, 53 hemodialyzed (HD) patients, and 111 renal transplant recipients (RT) were sampled before (T0) and 1 month after (T1) a single dose of Pandemrix(R) vaccine (GSK Biologicals, AS03-adjuvanted). We measured the neutralizing antibodies against A/H1N1/2009, the geometric mean (GM) titers, the GM titer ratios (T1/T0) with 95% confidence intervals, and the seroconversion rate (responders: >/=4-fold increase in titer). The HLA and MICA immunization was determined by Luminex technology. RESULTS: The GM titer ratio was 38 (19 to 78), 9 (5 to 16), and 5 (3 to 6) for controls, HD patients, and RT patients, respectively (P < 0.001). The proportion of responders was 90%, 57%, and 44%, respectively (P < 0.001). In RT patients, the prevalence of histocompatibility leukocyte antigen (HLA) class I, histocompatibility leukocyte antigen class II, and MHC class I-related chain A immunization, was, respectively, 15%, 14%, and 14% before and 14%, 14%, and 11% after vaccination (P = 1, 1, and 0.39). CONCLUSIONS: The influenza A/H1N1-adjuvanted vaccine is of limited efficacy but is safe in renal disease populations. The humoral response is lower in transplanted versus hemodialyzed patients. Further studies are needed to improve the efficacy of vaccination in those populations %B Clin.J.Am.Soc.Nephrol. %V 6 %P 2573 - 2578 %8 1/11/2011 %G eng %N 11 %1 38093 %& 2573 %R http://dx.doi.org/10.2215/CJN.04670511 %0 Journal Article %J Euro.Surveill %D 2011 %T Surveillance trends of the 2009 influenza A(H1N1) pandemic in Europe %A Amato-Gauci,A. %A Zucs,P. %A Snacken,R. %A Ciancio,B. %A Lopez,V. %A Broberg,E. %A Penttinen,P. %A Nicoll,A. %A European Influenza Surveillance Network EISN %A Isabelle Thomas %K 2009 %K article %K Control %K Diagnosis %K disease %K Disease Notification %K electronic %K epidemiology %K Europe %K European %K European Union %K Humans %K im %K incidence %K INFLUENZA %K Influenza A Virus,H1N1 Subtype %K Influenza,Human %K IS %K isolation & purification %K journal %K pandemic %K Pandemics %K Population Surveillance %K prevention %K REVIEW %K Risk Factors %K SB - IM %K Severity of Illness Index %K statistics & numerical data %K Surveillance %K Sweden %K trend %K trends %K virology %X

Surveillance trends of the 2009 influenza A(H1N1) pandemic in Europe

%B Euro.Surveill %V 16 %8 30/6/2011 %G eng %N 26 %1 36511 %0 Journal Article %J Archives of Public Health %D 2010 %T Case finding of Influenza A(H1N1)2009 in a non-exposed population in the early pandemic36885 %A Sophie Quoilin %A Isabelle Thomas %A Gerard,C. %A Bernard Brochier %A Bots,J. %A Lokietek,S. %A Robesyn,E. %A Françoise Wuillaume %A Gaetan Muyldermans %K a %K Case %K INFLUENZA %K pandemic %K POPULATION %X Not available %B Archives of Public Health %V 68 %P 53 - 61 %8 0/0/2010 %G eng %1 38328 %& 53 %R http://dx.doi.org/10.1186%2F0778-7367-68-2-53 %0 Journal Article %J Archives of Public Health %D 2010 %T Clinical influenza surveillance of Influenza A(H1N1) 2009 pandemic through the network of Sentinel General Practitioners36890 %A Viviane Van Casteren %A Karl Mertens %A Jérôme Antoine %A Simeon Wanyama %A Isabelle Thomas %A Nathalie Bossuyt %K 2009 %K Clinical %K general %K GENERAL PRACTITIONER %K general practitioners %K INFLUENZA %K Network %K pandemic %K practitioner %K Practitioners %K sentinel %K Surveillance %X Not available %B Archives of Public Health %V 68 %P 62 - 67 %8 0/0/2010 %G eng %1 36890 %& 62 %R http://dx.doi.org/10.1186%2F0778-7367-68-2-62 %0 Journal Article %J Archives of Public Health %D 2010 %T Confirmation diagnosis of Influenza A(H1N1)2009 by Belgian sentinel laboratories during the epidemic phase36883 %A Gaetan Muyldermans %A Ducoffre,G. %A Isabelle Thomas %A Clement,F. %A De Laere,E. %A Y. Glupczynski %A Hougardy,N. %A K. Lagrou %A P.E. Léonard %A Meex,C. %A Denis Piérard %A Raymaekers,M. %A Reynders,M. %A Stalpaert,M. %A Verstrepen,W. %A Sophie Quoilin %K Belgian %K Diagnosis %K epidemic %K INFLUENZA %K Laboratories %K sentinel %X Not available %B Archives of Public Health %V 68 %P 76 - 82 %8 0/0/2010 %G eng %1 38306 %& 76 %R http://dx.doi.org/10.1186%2F0778-7367-68-2-76 %0 Journal Article %J Archives of Public Health %D 2010 %T Influenza surveillance in children: First experiences with the Belgian Paediatric Surveillance system "Pedisurv" %A D Hue %A Jérôme Antoine %A Yves Dupont %A Van Eldere,J. %A Marc Van Ranst %A Martine Sabbe %A Isabelle Thomas %K Belgian %K CHILDREN %K Experience %K INFLUENZA %K paediatric %K Surveillance %K System %X Not available %B Archives of Public Health %V 68 %P 94 - 99 %8 0/0/2010 %G eng %N 3 %1 38343 %& 94 %R http://dx.doi.org/10.1186%2F0778-7367-68-3-94 %0 Journal Article %J Archives of Public Health %D 2010 %T Virological surveillance of the Influenza A (H1N1)2009 pandemic: the role of the Belgian National Influenza Centre %A Gerard,C. %A Bernard Brochier %A Sophie Quoilin %A Françoise Wuillaume %A Viviane Van Casteren %A Isabelle Thomas %K a %K Belgian %K INFLUENZA %K Influenza A Virus,H1N1 Subtype %K national %K pandemic %K Role %K Surveillance %X

Not available

%B Archives of Public Health %V 68 %P 68 - 75 %8 0/0/2010 %G eng %N 2 %1 31233 %& 68 %R http://dx.doi.org/10.1186%2F0778-7367-68-2-68 %0 Journal Article %J Euro.Surveill %D 2009 %T Cluster of hepatitis A cases among travellers returning from Egypt, Belgium, September through November 200836837 %A Robesyn,E. %A Micalessi,M.I. %A Sophie Quoilin %A Naranjo,M. %A Isabelle Thomas %K 2008 %K a %K an %K article %K Belgian %K Belgium %K Brussels %K care %K Case %K Cluster %K Common %K Control %K Countries %K disease %K Disease Outbreaks %K Egypt %K electronic %K epidemiology %K European %K Flemish %K France %K health %K Hepatitis %K Hepatitis A %K Humans %K Hypothesis %K im %K incidence %K Infectious %K investigation %K IS %K journal %K methods %K need %K outbreak %K POLICIES %K POLICY %K Population Surveillance %K public %K public health %K Public-health %K Risk Assessment %K Risk Factors %K SB - IM %K statistics & numerical data %K Surveillance %K Travel %K Vaccination %X Following a European alert by France, we detected a hepatitis A cluster in Belgian travellers returning from Egypt. Our investigation supports the hypothesis of a common source outbreak, linked to Nile river cruises. The outbreak also suggests the need to consider an intensification of the vaccination policy for travellers to hepatitis A endemic countries %B Euro.Surveill %V 14 %P pii=19095 %8 22/1/2009 %G eng %N 3 %1 38334 %& pii=19095 %0 Journal Article %J Bull.Mem.Acad.R.Med.Belg. %D 2009 %T Virologic surveillance of influenza, and of influenza A/H1N1 in particular, in Belgium36843 %A Isabelle Thomas %A Gerard,C. %A Françoise Wuillaume %A Viviane Van Casteren %A Bernard Brochier %K abstract %K Animals %K article %K Belgium %K Bruxelles %K de %K epidemiology %K Grippe %K History,21st Century %K Humans %K im %K INFLUENZA %K Influenza A Virus,H1N1 Subtype %K Influenza A Virus,H3N2 Subtype %K Influenza,Human %K IS %K journal %K national %K pathogenicity %K Print %K SB - IM %K Seasons %K Surveillance %K Swine %K Swine Diseases %K virology %X abstract %B Bull.Mem.Acad.R.Med.Belg. %V 164 %P 268 - 274 %8 0/0/2009 %G eng %N 10 %1 38397 %& 268 %0 Report %D 2008 %T La grippe en Belgique: importance de la surveillance %A Isabelle Thomas %A Viviane Van Casteren %A Gerard,C. %A Bernard Brochier %K Belgique %K de %K EN %K Grippe %K Surveillance %I WIV-ISP %C Brussels %P 4 %8 0/0/2008 %@ D/2009/2505/55 %G eng %1 38396 %0 Journal Article %J Euro Surveill %D 2006 %T Management of potential human cases of influenza A/H5N1: lessons from Belgium. %A Sophie Quoilin %A Isabelle Thomas %A Gérard, C %A Maes, S %A Haucotte, G %A Gerard, M %A Van Laethem, Y %A Snacken, R %A Hanquet, G %A Bernard Brochier %A Robesyn, E %K Belgium %K Communicable Disease Control %K Diagnosis, Differential %K Disease Outbreaks %K Guidelines as Topic %K Humans %K Influenza A Virus, H5N1 Subtype %K Influenza, Human %K Male %K Practice Patterns, Physicians' %K Risk Assessment %B Euro Surveill %V 11 %P E060126.1 %8 2006 Jan 26 %G eng %N 1 %1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16801712?dopt=Abstract %0 Journal Article %J Emerg Infect Dis %D 2005 %T Highly pathogenic H5N1 influenza virus in smuggled Thai eagles, Belgium. %A Steven Van Borm %A Isabelle Thomas %A Hanquet, Germaine %A Bénédicte Lambrecht %A Boschmans, Marc %A Dupont, Gérald %A Decaestecker, Mireille %A Snacken, René %A Thierry van den Berg %K Acetamides %K Animals %K Antiviral Agents %K Belgium %K Bird Diseases %K Crime %K Influenza A virus %K Influenza A Virus, H5N1 Subtype %K Influenza in Birds %K Oseltamivir %K Phylogeny %K Raptors %K Thailand %X

We report the isolation and characterization of a highly pathogenic avian influenza A/H5N1 virus from Crested Hawk-Eagles smuggled into Europe by air travel. A screening performed in human and avian contacts indicated no dissemination occurred. Illegal movements of birds are a major threat for the introduction of highly pathogenic avian influenza.

%B Emerg Infect Dis %V 11 %P 702-5 %8 2005 May %G eng %N 5 %1 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15890123?dopt=Abstract %R 10.3201/eid1105.050211 %0 Journal Article %J Vox Sang %D 2003 %T Prevalence of human erythrovirus B19 DNA in healthy Belgian blood donors and correlation with specific antibodies against structural and non-structural viral proteins. %A Isabelle Thomas %A Di Giambattista, M %A Gérard, C %A Esther Mathys %A Hougardy, V %A Latour, B %A Branckaert, T %A Laub, R %K Algorithms %K Antibodies, Viral %K Belgium %K Blood Donors %K DNA, Viral %K Erythema Infectiosum %K Humans %K Parvovirus B19, Human %K polymerase chain reaction %K prevalence %K Serologic Tests %K Viral Load %K Viral Proteins %X

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Human parvovirus (erythrovirus) B19 is recognized as a major contaminant of blood and blood products. To reduce the risk of contamination, plasma-pool screening and exclusion of highly viraemic donations are recommended. The objectives of this study were to estimate the prevalence of B19 DNA in our blood-donor population, to determine the appropriate pool size to be tested (taking into account parameters such as prevalence, viral load, test sensitivity, and the efficacy of inactivation procedures), and to correlate viral loads with the serological status of donors as regards antibodies against different viral proteins.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Pools of different sizes were tested for B19, using a sensitive nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) as well as an simple, un-nested, less sensitive PCR. Positive pools were resolved to the level of individual donations, and the viral load and serological markers were determined.

RESULTS: Of 16,859 donations, 27 (one of 625) were found to be B19 DNA positive, with viral loads ranging from 10(2) to > 10(7) IU/ml. Twenty-five of the positive donations were tested for VP-specific anti-B19 antibodies, and eight (32%) were negative for both immunoglobulin (Ig)M and IgG. They were probably collected in the preseroconversion window period or from chronic carriers without detectable antibodies. We regarded the seven (28%) IgM-positive donors as being in the early phase of infection. The remaining 10 (40%) IgM-negative, IgG-positive donors were probably carriers of persistent infection (i.e. PCR positive despite the presence of IgG antibodies), as suggested by their low viral loads (< 10(4) IU/ml). Fifteen out of 36 major pools contained one or more contaminated donations. Among these, 12 tested positive by nested PCR and only three by un-nested PCR, this reflecting a viral load of > 10(4) IU/ml.

CONCLUSIONS: By testing all donations as pools of 480 by un-nested PCR, and resolving positive pools to identify the responsible donations, it is possible to ensure that the viral load in fractionation pools (5000 donations) remains < 10(3) IU/ml, compatible with the efficacy of inactivation procedures and complying with Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recommendations.

%B Vox Sang %V 84 %P 300-7 %8 2003 May %G eng %N 4 %1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12757504?dopt=Abstract %0 Journal Article %J Clin Lab %D 2002 %T The use of nucleic acid amplification techniques to increase the viral safety of blood. %A Isabelle Thomas %A Esther Mathys %A Gerard, Carine %K Belgium %K Blood Banks %K Blood Transfusion %K DNA, Viral %K Humans %K Nucleic Acid Amplification Techniques %K Virus Diseases %X

Despite recent significant improvements in the viral safety of blood and blood products there remains a small risk of contamination mainly due to the existence of a window period before the appearance of antibodies. Nucleic acid amplification technologies (NAT) permit a direct detection of the viral genome itself with an extreme sensitivity and specificity, without depending anymore on the delayed appearance of antibodies. These technologies can be applied to detect most blood-borne viruses. However, the usefulness and strategies will largely depend on different features specific to the type of the virus, such as pathogenicity, prevalence of the infection, viral load during preseroconversion, doubling time of the virus and infectious dose. Many studies have already been conducted in different parts of the world, and the results proving the feasibility of the NAT screening are more than encouraging. However, some problems still remain to be solved in theroutine application of these technologies.

%B Clin Lab %V 48 %P 155-60 %8 2002 %G eng %N 3-4 %1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11934217?dopt=Abstract %0 Journal Article %J Vox Sang %D 2000 %T PCR detects HCV RNA in a plasma pool contaminated by a single preseroconversion donation of genotype 5a. %A Isabelle Thomas %A Branckaert, T %A Esther Mathys %A Vranckx, R %A Laub, R %K Belgium %K Blood Donors %K Consumer Product Safety %K Drug Contamination %K Genotype %K Hepacivirus %K Hepatitis C %K Humans %K polymerase chain reaction %K prevalence %K Reagent Kits, Diagnostic %K Reference Standards %K RNA, Viral %K Sensitivity and Specificity %K Serologic Tests %K Viral Load %X

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: To determine the prevalence of HCV-RNA-positive plasma pools in Belgium, to validate our PCR method and to increase the safety of the released blood products.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Plasma pools consisting each of about 5,000 donations from Belgian unpaid volunteer blood donors were analysed by PCR for the presence of HCV RNA. Two different extraction methods were compared and validated.

RESULTS: Two out of 367 plasma pools were found to be HCV RNA positive and were discarded. For one of these two pools, the look-back procedure identified an anti-HCV-negative contaminated donation. The HCV genotype of both the contaminated pool and the donation was 5a, a genotype rare in Europe. The viral load of the preseroconverted donation was 2.9 x 10(7) gEq/ml according to the bDNA method.

CONCLUSION: In the case of plasma derivatives, various important steps are already included to increase safety. Nucleic acid testing of manufacturing plasma pools ensures that viral load in the starting material is as low as possible.

%B Vox Sang %V 79 %P 69-71 %8 2000 %G eng %N 2 %1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11054042?dopt=Abstract %R 31214 %0 Journal Article %J Clin Infect Dis %D 1999 %T A case-control study after a hantavirus infection outbreak in the south of Belgium: who is at risk? %A Van Loock, F %A Isabelle Thomas %A Clement, J %A Ghoos, S %A Colson, P %K ADOLESCENT %K Adult %K Aged %K Aged, 80 and over %K Animals %K Antibodies, Viral %K Belgium %K Case-Control Studies %K Disease Outbreaks %K Female %K Hantavirus %K Hantavirus Infections %K Humans %K Male %K middle aged %K Multivariate Analysis %K Risk Factors %K Rodentia %X

Puumala is the most common hantavirus serotype in Europe and is spread mainly by the red bank vole. Between 1 July 1992 and 31 January 1994, an outbreak of Puumala virus-induced nephropathia epidemica (NE) occurred in the Belgian Ardennes. Serologically confirmed cases (n = 41) were compared with two groups of asymptomatic seronegative controls. Risks identified included sighting of living rodents, exposure to rodent droppings, and trapping rodents during the 4 weeks preceding onset of symptoms. Activities during this 4-week period that presented the greatest risk were woodcutting, reopening of a nonaerated room, and strenuous physical effort. This is the first case-control study on risk factors for NE in Europe. In comparison with the American form of hantavirus pulmonary syndrome, which is spread by deer mice, professional activity appears to be a more important risk factor for acquisition of hantavirus in Europe.

%B Clin Infect Dis %V 28 %P 834-9 %8 1999 Apr %G eng %N 4 %1 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10825047?dopt=Abstract %R 10.1086/515196 %0 Report %D 0 %T Virological Surveillance of Influenza in Belgium: season 2018-2019 %A Isabelle Thomas %A Cyril Barbezange %A Steven Van Gucht %A Weyckmans,J. %A Ilham Fdillate %A Reinout Van Eycken %A Assia Hamouda %A Nathalie Bossuyt %A Sophie Quoilin %A Dieter Van Cauteren %A Sarah Denayer %A François Dufrasne %G eng