A 2009 varicella outbreak in a Connecticut residential facility for adults with intellectual disability.

Jessica Leung, Kathy Kudish, Chengbin Wang, Latetia Moore, Paul Gacek, Kay Radford, Adriana Lopez, Lynn Sosa, D Scott Schmid, Matthew Cartter, Stephanie Bialek

National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia 30333, USA. JLeung@cdc.gov

The Journal of infectious diseases 2010 Nov 15

filter terms:

We investigated a varicella outbreak in a residential facility for adults with intellectual disabilities. A case of varicella was defined as a generalized maculopapular rash that developed in a facility resident or employee. Immunoglobulin M testing was conducted on serologic samples, and polymerase chain reaction testing was performed on environmental and skin lesion samples. Eleven cases were identified among 70 residents and 2 among ∼145 staff. An unrecognized case of herpes zoster was the likely source. Case patients first entered any residential facility at a younger age than non-case residents (9.5 vs 15.0 years; P < .01). Varicella zoster virus DNA was detected 2 months after the outbreak in environmental samples obtained from case patients' residences. This outbreak exemplifies the potential for at-risk pockets of varicella-susceptible adults, especially among those who have lived in residential facilities from a young age. Evidence of immunity should be verified for all adults and healthcare staff in similar residential settings.

Citation

Jessica Leung, Kathy Kudish, Chengbin Wang, Latetia Moore, Paul Gacek, Kay Radford, Adriana Lopez, Lynn Sosa, D Scott Schmid, Matthew Cartter, Stephanie Bialek. A 2009 varicella outbreak in a Connecticut residential facility for adults with intellectual disability. The Journal of infectious diseases. 2010 Nov 15;202(10):1486-91