Human Infection with a Novel Avian-Origin Influenza A (H7N9) Virus

• Published in: The New England journal of medicine Vol. 368; no. 20; pp. 1888 - 1897
• Main Authors: Gao, Rongbao, Cao, Bin, Hu, Yunwen, Feng, Zijian, Wang, Dayan, Hu, Wanfu, Chen, Jian, Jie, Zhijun, Qiu, Haibo, Xu, Ke, Xu, Xuewei, Lu, Hongzhou, Zhu, Wenfei, Gao, Zhancheng, Xiang, Nijuan, Shen, Yinzhong, He, Zebao, Gu, Yong, Zhang, Zhiyong, Yang, Yi, Zhao, Xiang, Zhou, Lei, Li, Xiaodan, Zou, Shumei, Zhang, Ye, Li, Xiyan, Yang, Lei, Guo, Junfeng, Dong, Jie, Li, Qun, Dong, Libo, Zhu, Yun, Bai, Tian, Wang, Shiwen, Hao, Pei, Yang, Weizhong, Zhang, Yanping, Han, Jun, Yu, Hongjie, Li, Dexin, Gao, George F, Wu, Guizhen, Wang, Yu, Yuan, Zhenghong, Shu, Yuelong
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Waltham, MA Massachusetts Medical Society 16.05.2013
• Subjects: Adult; Aged, 80 and over; Animals; Avian flu; Biological and medical sciences; China; Cough; Disease control; Dyspnea; Epidemiology; Exo-a-sialidase; Fatal Outcome; Female; Fever; Gene deletion; General aspects; Genome, Viral; Genomes; Hemagglutinins; Human viral diseases; Humans; Illnesses; Infections; Infectious diseases; Influenza A; Influenza A virus - classification; Influenza A virus - genetics; Influenza A virus - isolation & purification; Influenza in Birds - transmission; Influenza in Birds - virology; Influenza, Human - virology; Life Sciences; Male; Medical sciences; Microbiology and Parasitology; Phylogenetics; Phylogeny; Pneumonia; Poultry; Radiography; Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction; Reassortant Viruses; Respiratory distress syndrome; Respiratory Distress Syndrome, Adult - etiology; Respiratory tract diseases; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; Sequence Analysis, DNA; Software; Viral diseases; Viral diseases of the respiratory system and ent viral diseases; Virology; Viruses; China; Beijing China; Netherlands; Virus; Avian influenza; Human; Infection; Medicine; Influenzavirus A; Influenza A virus; Viral disease; Orthomyxoviridae
• ISSN: 0028-4793; 1533-4406; 1533-4406
• DOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa1304459

The emergence of a novel avian-origin influenza A virus strain (H7N9) causing severe human disease in China has raised serious concerns. In this report, key clinical and virologic features of this outbreak are presented. Sporadic human infections with avian influenza A viruses, which usually occur after recent exposure to poultry, have caused a wide spectrum of illness, ranging from conjunctivitis and upper respiratory tract disease to pneumonia and multiorgan failure. Low pathogenic avian influenza A (H7N2, H7N3, H9N2, or H10N7) 1 – 4 virus infections have caused lower respiratory tract illness that is mild (conjunctivitis or uncomplicated influenza-like illness) to moderate in severity. Most human infections with highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) A (H7) viruses have resulted in conjunctivitis (H7N3) or uncomplicated influenza illness, but one case of fatal acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) was reported . . .