Increased levels of HIV RNA detected in samples with viral loads close to the detection limit collected in Plasma Preparation Tubes (PPT).

Background: The accurate and reliable quantification of HIV RNA is an essential part of the management of HIV infected individuals, and elucidation of factors that may affect HIV RNA measurements, such as the use of Vacutainer Plasma Preparation Tubes (PPT), is crucial.

Objectives: The objective of this study was to determine if plasma samples with viral loads close to the lower limit of the dynamic range of the assay collected in PPT tubes had increased levels of HIV RNA as compared to samples collected in standard EDTA tubes.

Study Design: HIV RNA levels were compared in 112 paired plasma samples collected in PPT and standard EDTA tubes.

Efficiency of the ortho VITROS assay for detection of hepatitis C virus-specific antibodies increased by elimination of supplemental testing of samples with very low sample-to-cutoff ratios.

The clinical significance of specimens with low sample-to-cutoff (S/Co) ratios in the Ortho VITROS chemiluminescence assay (CIA) for detection of antibodies to hepatitis C virus (HCV) was evaluated. In one study of 482 CIA-reactive samples, none of the 83 samples with S/Co ratios of < 5 was HCV RNA positive. In a subsequent study, 332 samples with S/Co ratios of between 1 and 20 were tested with the recombinant immunoblot assay (RIBA).

Comparison of SmartCycler real-time reverse transcription-PCR assay in a public health laboratory with direct immunofluorescence and cell culture assays in a medical center for detection of influenza A virus.

A single-tube real-time (fluorogenic) reverse transcription (RT)-PCR with the SmartCycler instrument (SmartCycler RT-PCR) for influenza A virus detection was evaluated with 238 respiratory specimens. Direct immunofluorescence antibody staining (DFA) and primary rhesus monkey kidney cell culture were performed on-site at Yale-New Haven Hospital. Specimens were transported to the Connecticut Department of Public Health Laboratory for real-time RT-PCR.

Bioterrorism-related inhalational anthrax in an elderly woman, Connecticut, 2001.

On November 20, 2001, inhalational anthrax was confirmed in an elderly woman from rural Connecticut. To determine her exposure source, we conducted an extensive epidemiologic, environmental, and laboratory investigation. Molecular subtyping showed that her isolate was indistinguishable from isolates associated with intentionally contaminated letters.

Isolation of eastern equine encephalitis virus and West Nile virus from crows during increased arbovirus surveillance in Connecticut, 2000.

The emergence of the West Nile virus (WNV) in the northeastern United States has drawn emphasis to the need for expanded arbovirus surveillance in Connecticut. Although the state of Connecticut began a comprehensive mosquito-screening program in 1997, only since 1999 have there been efforts to determine the prevalence of arboviruses in bird populations in this state. Herein, we report on our results of an arbovirus survey of 1,704 bird brains.

Inactivation of West Nile virus during serologic testing and transport.

Inactivation of West Nile virus (WNV) in enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) wash buffer at 37 degrees C was studied, as well as inactivation of WNV in cell culture medium over several days at an ambient temperature (28 degrees C). Aliquots of WNV were removed from the 37 degrees C ELISA wash buffer at 5, 15, 30, and 60 min for the former experiment, while daily aliquots of medium were sampled for the latter experiment. No virus was detected in the wash buffer at 30 and 60 min, while virus was readily detected from cell culture medium over this time.

Fatal inhalational anthrax in a 94-year-old Connecticut woman.

We describe the 11th case of bioterrorism-related inhalational anthrax reported in the United States. The presenting clinical features of this 94-year-old woman were subtle and nondistinctive. The diagnosis was recognized because blood cultures were obtained prior to administration of antibiotics, emphasizing the importance of this diagnostic test in evaluating ill patients who have been exposed to Bacillus anthracis.