Pneumonia Due to Human Coronavirus OC43 in an Immunocompetent Adult Detected by Multiplex Polymerase Chain Reaction

• Published in: Internal Medicine Vol. 60; no. 21; pp. 3497 - 3501
• Main Authors: Kawataki, Masanori, Ito, Akihiro, Ishida, Tadashi
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Japan The Japanese Society of Internal Medicine 01.11.2021; Japan Science and Technology Agency
• Subjects: Adult; Case Report; Coronavirus Infections - diagnosis; Coronavirus OC43, Human - genetics; Coronaviruses; Cough; COVID-19; Diagnosis, Differential; Female; Fever; Gene amplification; human corona virus OC43; Humans; Internal medicine; Molecular Diagnostic Techniques; multiplex PCR; Multiplex Polymerase Chain Reaction; Nucleic Acid Amplification Techniques; Pharyngitis; Pneumonia; Pneumonia, Viral - diagnosis; Pneumonia, Viral - virology; Polymerase chain reaction; Reverse transcription; viral pneumonia; COVID-19; multiplex PCR; human corona virus OC43; viral pneumonia
• ISSN: 0918-2918; 1349-7235
• DOI: 10.2169/internalmedicine.7450-21

A 40-year-old woman developed a fever, sore throat, and cough. Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) was suspected; chest CT showed pan-lobular ground-glass opacity in the bilateral lower lobes suggesting viral pneumonia. Although a reverse transcription loop-mediated isothermal amplification (RT-LAMP) test for COVID-19 using a nasopharyngeal swab was negative, she was hospitalized and isolated because COVID-19 could not be ruled out. After admission, multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) with the FilmArray Respiratory Panel 2.1 from a nasopharyngeal swab was positive for human coronavirus (HCoV) OC43. Therefore, the diagnosis was pneumonia due to HCoV-OC43. Multiplex PCR is useful for differentiating pneumonia due to COVID-19 from that due to other viral pneumonias.