Search PubMed⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

J F Anderson

Publications and source records attributed to J F Anderson.

At least 163 records · Page 9Linked to original sources

Group A streptococcal necrotizing fasciitis of the psoas muscle.

Group A streptococci are common colonizers of the skin and upper respiratory tract. Serious infections of the respiratory tract as well as the skin and soft tissue are common. Highly virulent Group A streptococci are not infrequently the cause of invasive, life-threatening infections. Necrotizing fasciitis is uncommon and rarely the result of Group A streptococci. Necrotizing fasciitis of the psoas from Group A streptococci has been reported as a complication in patients with colon cancer perforation or peritonitis. We report the first case of Group A streptococcal necrotizing fasciitis of the psoas muscle not associated with peritonitis or colon perforation.

Adult↗

Epizootiology of Borrelia in Ixodes tick vectors and reservoir hosts.

Four North American and two European species of Ixodes ticks harbor borreliae. Three of the North American species--Ixodes dammini, Ixodes scapularis, and Ixodes pacificus--and two Old World species--Ixodes ricinus and Ixodes persulcatus--feed on a wide range of hosts, including humans; the North American Ixodes dentatus has a predilection for cottontail rabbits and rarely parasitizes humans. In Lyme disease foci in North America where I. dammini is common, Borrelia burgdorferi or similar types of spirochetes have been cultured from 10 species of wild or domestic mammals and from one species of songbird. The prevalence of infected rodents is remarkably high (greater than or equal to 75%) in these foci. Several different antigenic variants of B. burgdorferi have been cultured. Initial isolates of B. burgdorferi in North America were remarkably homogeneous, but documentation of different variants is increasing. The association of different antigenic variants with diseases in humans and domestic animals needs to be clarified.

Animals↗

Mosquito surveillance for West Nile virus in Connecticut, 2000: isolation from Culex pipiens, Cx. restuans, Cx. salinarius, and Culiseta melanura.

Fourteen isolations of West Nile (WN) virus were obtained from four mosquito species (Culex pipiens [5], Cx. restuans [4], Cx. salinarius [2], and Culiseta melanura [3]) in statewide surveillance conducted from June through October 2000. Most isolates were obtained from mosquitoes collected in densely populated residential locales in Fairfield and New Haven counties, where the highest rates of dead crow sightings were reported and where WN virus was detected in 1999. Minimum field infection rates per 1,000 mosquitoes ranged from 0.5 to 1.8 (county based) and from 1.3 to 76.9 (site specific). Cx. restuans appears to be important in initiating WN virus transmission among birds in early summer; Cx. pipiens appears to play a greater role in amplifying virus later in the season. Cs. melanura could be important in the circulation of WN virus among birds in sylvan environments; Cx. salinarius is a suspected vector of WN virus to humans and horses.

Animals↗

Geographic distribution of humans, raccoons, and white-footed mice with antibodies to Lyme disease spirochetes in Connecticut.

An indirect immunofluorescence test was used during 1982-1983 to identify antibodies to Lyme disease spirochetes in humans, white-footed mice, and raccoons. Serologic tests detected IgM or total Ig antibodies in serum samples from 67 persons. Onset of illness, as marked by erythema chronicum migrans (ECM), occurred mainly during July and August. The majority of the persons with Lyme disease lived in south central and southeastern Connecticut. Analyses also verified prior spirochetal infections in 29 of 323 (9 percent) white-footed mice and in three of 34 (9 percent) raccoons captured at sites with or without evidence of human infections. Results indicate potential for Lyme disease at numerous localities in Connecticut.

Animals↗

Avian and mammalian hosts for spirochete-infected ticks and insects in a Lyme disease focus in Connecticut.

Spirochetes and their vectors and reservoirs were studied in a Lyme disease focus in East Haddam, Connecticut, from mid-May through September 1983. Ixodes dammini subadults were comparable in number on white-footed mice (Peromyscus leucopus) (means = 2.9 +/- 3.6 SD) to those on 27 different species of birds (means = 2.3 +/- 4.2 SD) representing 11 families within the order Passeriformes. Less commonly found ticks on birds (means less than or equal to 0.1) were immature Ixodes dentatus and Haemaphysalis leporispalustris. Although spirochete-infected I. dammini larvae and nymphs were taken off eight and nine different species of birds, respectively, significantly fewer positive larvae were removed from birds than from white-footed mice. Spirochetes were detected in the midguts of I. dammini, Dermacentor variabilis, and H. leporispalustris and two species of insects (Cuterebra fontinella and Orchopeas leucopus). Possibly, arthropods other than I. dammini vector these spirochetes in northeastern United States. Spirochetes grew in a cell-free medium inoculated with bloods from four white-footed mice, one woodland jumping mouse (Napaeozapus insignis), one northern mockingbird (Mimus polyglottos), one gray catbird (Dumetella carolinensis), two prairie warblers (Dendroica discolor), one orchard oriole (Icterus spurius), one common yellowthroat (Geothlypis trichas), and one American robin (Turdus migratorius). We suggest that avian hosts, like mammals, develop spirochetemias of the causative agent of Lyme disease. Erythematous tissues from a white-footed mouse were infected with spirochetes.

Animals↗