Publications

fever and encephalopathy in two school age boys.		1998	9802647
newly recognized focus of la crosse encephalitis in tennessee.	la crosse virus is a mosquito-borne arbovirus that causes encephalitis in children. only nine cases were reported in tennessee during the 33-year period from 1964-1996. we investigated a cluster of la crosse encephalitis cases in eastern tennessee in 1997. medical records of all suspected cases of la crosse virus infection at a pediatric referral hospital were reviewed, and surveillance was enhanced in the region. previous unreported cases were identified by surveying 20 hospitals in the surroun ...	1999	10028077
serological survey and active surveillance for la crosse virus infections among children in tennessee.	in 1998 and 1999, we performed a serosurvey and active surveillance for la crosse encephalitis at a children's hospital in eastern tennessee. fifteen cases of la crosse encephalitis were confirmed. only 5 (0.5%) of 1000 serum samples being tested at the state laboratory for other diseases had evidence of antibodies to la crosse virus. these findings suggest that la crosse virus is newly endemic to eastern tennessee.	2000	11073765
first isolation of la crosse virus from naturally infected aedes albopictus.	la crosse (lac) virus, a california serogroup bunyavirus, is the leading cause of pediatric arboviral encephalitis in the united states and an emerging disease in tennessee, west virginia, and north carolina. human cases of lac encephalitis in tennessee and north carolina have increased above endemic levels during 1997 to 1999 and may represent an expansion of a new southeastern endemic focus. this report describes the isolation of lac virus from the exotic mosquito aedes albopictus. the discove ...	2001	11747692
la crosse encephalitis in eastern tennessee: clinical, environmental, and entomological characteristics from a blinded cohort study.	a blinded cohort study was conducted in 2000 to better understand the emergence of la crosse virus infection in eastern tennessee, with special emphasis on the potential mosquito vector(s). children with suspected central nervous system infection were enrolled at the time of clinical presentation at a large pediatric referral hospital. clinical, environmental, and entomological data were collected prior to case confirmation. sixteen of the 40 children included in the final analysis were confirme ...	2002	12034585
temporal abundance, parity, survival rates, and arbovirus isolation of field-collected container-inhabiting mosquitoes in eastern tennessee.	surveillance of container-inhabiting mosquitoes was conducted from june 17 through november 9, 1998, at 2 1997 la crosse virus (lac) human case sites (knox and cocke counties, tennessee). mosquitoes were collected weekly with 2 dry ice-baited centers for disease control miniature light traps, 2 omnidirectional fay traps, and 40 oviposition traps at each site. a total of 8,408 mosquitoes, composed of ochlerotatus triseriatus (n = 2,095) and aedes albopictus (n = 6,313), were reared or collected a ...	2002	12322937
clinical comparisons of la crosse encephalitis and enteroviral central nervous system infections in a pediatric population: 2001 surveillance in east tennessee.	la crosse encephalitis (lac) is a mosquito-borne illness that primarily affects children. in 1997, an initial cluster of cases was identified by the regional pediatric referral center in east tennessee. since that time, public health officials, pediatric infectious disease physicians, infection control nurses, laboratory personnel, entomologists, and centers for disease control and prevention consultants have collaborated to provide ongoing surveillance activities. studies comparing lac cases wi ...	2003	14647115
assessing risk in focal arboviral infections: are we missing the big or little picture?	focal arboviral infections affecting a subset of the overall population present an often overlooked set of challenges in the assessment and reporting of risk and the detection of spatial patterns. our objective was to assess the variation in risk when using different at-risk populations and geographic scales for the calculation of incidence risk and the detection of geographic hot-spots of infection. we explored these variations using a pediatric arbovirus, la crosse virus (lacv), as our model.	2009	19742311
the mosquitoes of eastern tennessee: studies on abundance, habitat preferences, and host-seeking behaviors.	a significant increase in the number of reported cases of la crosse virus (lacv) infections in eastern tennessee has occurred in the last ten years. the objective of this study was to determine the abundance and habitat preferences of the potential vectors of lacv in this region. adult host-seeking mosquitoes were collected using co(2)-baited cdc light traps and a series of human-landing catches in eastern tennessee from 2004 to 2006. a total of 4,200 female mosquitoes of 23 species was collecte ...	2009	20836807
La Crosse Encephalitis Surveillance using Single Versus Paired Serologic Testing.	We evaluated the validity of single versus paired serologic testing for La Crosse virus (LACV) encephalitis surveillance. Compared with paired serology, a single positive IgG or IgM immunoflourescent antibody titre appears useful for LACV encephalitis surveillance with sensitivity, 75%; specificity, 98%; positive predictive value, 95%; and overall test efficiency 92%.	2011	21848528
comparative sequence analyses of la crosse virus strain isolated from patient with fatal encephalitis, tennessee, usa.	we characterized a la crosse virus (lacv) isolate from the brain of a child who died of encephalitis-associated complications in eastern tennessee, usa, during summer 2012. we compared the isolate with lacv sequences from mosquitoes collected near the child's home just after his postmortem diagnosis. in addition, we conducted phylogenetic analyses of these and other sequences derived from lacv strains representing varied temporal, geographic, and ecologic origins. consistent with historical find ...	0	25898269
la crosse encephalitis virus infection in field-collected aedes albopictus, aedes japonicus, and aedes triseriatus in tennessee.	la crosse virus (lacv) is a mosquito-borne virus and a major cause of pediatric encephalitis in the usa. la crosse virus emerged in tennessee and other states in the appalachian region in 1997. we investigated lacv infection rates and seasonal abundances of the native mosquito vector, aedes triseriatus, and 2 recently introduced mosquito species, ae. albopictus and ae. japonicus, in an emerging disease focus in tennessee. mosquitoes were collected using multiple trapping methods specific for aed ...	2015	26375904
evaluating surveillance methods for arboviral vectors of la crosse virus and west nile virus of southern appalachia.	to monitor mosquito-borne diseases, public health departments conduct mosquito and pathogen surveillance. our objective was to evaluate mosquito monitoring methods for collecting la crosse virus (lacv) and west nile virus (wnv) vectors (aedes and culex mosquitoes, respectively) in southern appalachia. centers for disease control and prevention (cdc) light traps baited with carbon dioxide (co(2)), cdc light traps baited with co(2) and bg lure, bg-sentinel traps baited with co(2), gravid traps bai ...	2016	27105213
la crosse virus vectors are host-seeking and ovipositing after 1700 h in eastern tennessee.	la crosse virus (lacv) is transmitted via the bites of infected aedes mosquitoes (ae. triseriatus, ae. albopictus, and ae. japonicus) and causes la crosse encephalitis, which is the most commonly diagnosed arbovirus in eastern tennessee children. this study identified host-seeking and oviposition activity of lacv vectors over a diel period, as it relates to traditional working hours. nineteen sites in knox county, tn, were monitored with host-seeking (centers for disease control and prevention [ ...	2017	28854104