Coxsackievirus B heart infections and their putative contribution to sudden unexpected death: An 8-year review of patients and victims in the coastal region of Tunisia.

Coxsackieviruses B (CV B) are known as the most common viral cause of human heart infections. Cardiac inflammations contribute to sudden unexpected death (SUD) significantly. The diagnosis remains difficult with the traditional diagnostic tests and must be substantially improved.

Postmortem diagnosis of infectious heart diseases: A mystifying cause of Sudden Infant Death.

Sudden infant death (SID) is an unresolved problem of high relevance and previous studies have indicated a role of viral heart infections. The diagnosis remains difficult in clinical practice using routine diagnostic tests and must be substantially improved. A prospective study based on post-mortem samples from SID victims whose heart disease was not clinically recognized was conducted for 4 years in a Tunisian University Hospital.

Coxsackievirus B detection in cases of myocarditis, myopericarditis, pericarditis and dilated cardiomyopathy in hospitalized patients.

Coxsackieviruses B (CV‑B) are known as the most common viral cause of human heart infections. The aim of the present study was to assess the potential role of CV‑B in the etiology of infectious heart disease in hospitalized patients. The present study is based on blood, pericardial fluid and heart biopsies from 102 patients and 100 control subjects.

Study of Coxsackie B viruses interactions with Coxsackie Adenovirus receptor and Decay-Accelerating Factor using Human CaCo-2 cell line.

Background: Decay Accelerating Factor (DAF) and Coxsackievirus-Adenovirus Receptor (CAR) have been identified as cellular receptors for Coxsackie B viruses (CV-B). The aim of this study is to elucidate the different binding properties of CV-B serotypes and to find out if there are any amino acid changes that could be associated to the different phenotypes.Twenty clinical CV-B isolates were tested on CaCo-2 cell line using anti-DAF (BRIC216) and anti-CAR (RmcB) antibodies.

An outbreak of West Nile Virus infection in the region of Monastir, Tunisia, 2003.

Background: A West Nile (WN) fever epidemic occurred in the region of Monastir, Tunisia, between August and October 2003.

Aim Of The Study: We attempt to describe the epidemiology, clinical presentation, and outcome of patients with confirmed West Nile virus (WNV) infection.

Methods: Three groups of specimens were prepared.

Sudden unexpected death related to enterovirus myocarditis: histopathology, immunohistochemistry and molecular pathology diagnosis at post-mortem.

Background: Viral myocarditis is a major cause of sudden unexpected death in children and young adults. Until recently, coxsackievirus B3 (CVB3) has been the most commonly implicated virus in myocarditis. At present, no standard diagnosis is generally accepted due to the insensitivity of traditional diagnostic tests.

Coxsackie B3 myocarditis in a case of sudden unexpected death in young athlete: histopathological, immunohistochemical and molecularpathological for diagnosis.

Virus-induced myocarditis is a common disease even in infants and young adults, but the diagnosis can be difficult according to the Dallas-criteria, which have been criticized as being too unreliable. The diagnosis has been substantially improved due to immunohistochemistry (IHC) for the detection of the VP1-capsid-protein of enterovirus as well as reversetranscriptase-polymerase chain reaction assays (RT-PCR) for viral genome detection. We report an unusual case of myocarditis in a young adult athlete whose heart disease was not clinically recognized and, thus, caused his sudden unexpected death (SUD).

[Detection of enteric viruses in wastewater of Monastir region by RT-PCR method].

Background: Wastewater frequently has been contaminated by enteric viruses, which can cause gastroenteritis, hepatitis, and other viral diseases. Since current water treatments do not ensure their complete removal and they become contaminants of the water environment.

Aim: In order to monitor and assess the prevalence and the seasonal incidence of enteric viruses contaminating wastewater, a total of 93 samples were collected from the stations of Sayada-Lamta-Bouhjar and El Frina.

Prevalence of IgG antibodies against West Nile virus in blood donors during the 2003 outbreak in Tunisia.

This study aimed to evaluate the prevalence of anti-West Nile virus (WNV) IgG among two populations of Tunisian blood donors living in areas where human outbreaks of WNV have occurred. Cohorts A (Monastir) and B (Mahdia) included 742 and 102 blood donors respectively. Sera were tested by IgG ELISA test and results were confirmed by PRNT test.