Probable airborne transmission of Burkholderia pseudomallei causing an urban outbreak of melioidosis during typhoon season in Hong Kong, China
Between January 2015 and October 2022, 38 patients with culture-confirmed melioidosis were identified in the Kowloon West (KW) Region, Hong Kong. Notably, 30 of them were clustered in the Sham Shui Po (SSP) district, which covers an estimated area of 2.5 km2. Between August and October 2022, 18 pati...
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Taylor & Francis Group
2023-12-01
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| Series: | Emerging Microbes and Infections |
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| Online Access: | https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/22221751.2023.2204155 |
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| author | Wing-Gi Wu Marcus Ho-Hin Shum Ivan Tak-Fai Wong Kelvin Keru Lu Lam-Kwong Lee Jake Siu-Lun Leung Hiu-Yin Lao Annie Wing-Tung Lee Pak-Ting Hau Chloe Toi-Mei Chan Harmen Fung-Tin Wong Sharon Ka-Yee Fung Sally Choi-Ying Wong Iain Chi-Fung Ng Timothy Ting-Leung Ng Ning Chow Alex Yat-Man Ho Mei Fan Hung Franklin Wang-Ngai Chow Maureen Mo-Lin Wong Wing-Kin To Tommy Tsan-Yuk Lam Kristine Shik Luk Gilman Kit-Hang Siu |
| author_facet | Wing-Gi Wu Marcus Ho-Hin Shum Ivan Tak-Fai Wong Kelvin Keru Lu Lam-Kwong Lee Jake Siu-Lun Leung Hiu-Yin Lao Annie Wing-Tung Lee Pak-Ting Hau Chloe Toi-Mei Chan Harmen Fung-Tin Wong Sharon Ka-Yee Fung Sally Choi-Ying Wong Iain Chi-Fung Ng Timothy Ting-Leung Ng Ning Chow Alex Yat-Man Ho Mei Fan Hung Franklin Wang-Ngai Chow Maureen Mo-Lin Wong Wing-Kin To Tommy Tsan-Yuk Lam Kristine Shik Luk Gilman Kit-Hang Siu |
| author_sort | Wing-Gi Wu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Between January 2015 and October 2022, 38 patients with culture-confirmed melioidosis were identified in the Kowloon West (KW) Region, Hong Kong. Notably, 30 of them were clustered in the Sham Shui Po (SSP) district, which covers an estimated area of 2.5 km2. Between August and October 2022, 18 patients were identified in this district after heavy rainfall and typhoons. The sudden upsurge in cases prompted an environmental investigation, which involved collecting 20 air samples and 72 soil samples from residential areas near the patients. A viable isolate of Burkholderia pseudomallei was obtained from an air sample collected at a building site five days after a typhoon. B. pseudomallei DNA was also detected in 21 soil samples collected from the building site and adjacent gardening areas using full-length 16S rRNA gene sequencing, suggesting that B. psuedomallei is widely distributed in the soil environment surrounding the district. Core genome-multilocus sequence typing showed that the air sample isolate was phylogenetically clustered with the outbreak isolates in KW Region. Multispectral satellite imagery revealed a continuous reduction in vegetation region in SSP district by 162,255 m2 from 2016 to 2022, supporting the hypothesis of inhalation of aerosols from the contaminated soil as the transmission route of melioidosis during extreme weather events. This is because the bacteria in unvegetated soil are more easily spread by winds. In consistent with inhalational melioidosis, 24 (63.2%) patients had pneumonia. Clinicians should be aware of melioidosis during typhoon season and initiate appropriate investigation and treatment for patients with compatible symptoms. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-c3a8a233eced457a8aaf656ab19f7432 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 2222-1751 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2023-12-01 |
| publisher | Taylor & Francis Group |
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| series | Emerging Microbes and Infections |
| spelling | doaj-art-c3a8a233eced457a8aaf656ab19f74322025-08-20T02:59:07ZengTaylor & Francis GroupEmerging Microbes and Infections2222-17512023-12-0112110.1080/22221751.2023.2204155Probable airborne transmission of Burkholderia pseudomallei causing an urban outbreak of melioidosis during typhoon season in Hong Kong, ChinaWing-Gi Wu0Marcus Ho-Hin Shum1Ivan Tak-Fai Wong2Kelvin Keru Lu3Lam-Kwong Lee4Jake Siu-Lun Leung5Hiu-Yin Lao6Annie Wing-Tung Lee7Pak-Ting Hau8Chloe Toi-Mei Chan9Harmen Fung-Tin Wong10Sharon Ka-Yee Fung11Sally Choi-Ying Wong12Iain Chi-Fung Ng13Timothy Ting-Leung Ng14Ning Chow15Alex Yat-Man Ho16Mei Fan Hung17Franklin Wang-Ngai Chow18Maureen Mo-Lin Wong19Wing-Kin To20Tommy Tsan-Yuk Lam21Kristine Shik Luk22Gilman Kit-Hang Siu23Department of Pathology, Princess Margaret Hospital, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, People’s Republic of ChinaState Key Laboratory of Emerging Infectious Diseases, School of Public Health, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, People’s Republic of ChinaDepartment of Health Technology and Informatics, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong Administrative Region, People's Republic of ChinaDepartment of Health Technology and Informatics, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong Administrative Region, People's Republic of ChinaDepartment of Health Technology and Informatics, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong Administrative Region, People's Republic of ChinaDepartment of Health Technology and Informatics, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong Administrative Region, People's Republic of ChinaDepartment of Health Technology and Informatics, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong Administrative Region, People's Republic of ChinaDepartment of Health Technology and Informatics, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong Administrative Region, People's Republic of ChinaDepartment of Health Technology and Informatics, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong Administrative Region, People's Republic of ChinaDepartment of Health Technology and Informatics, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong Administrative Region, People's Republic of ChinaDepartment of Health Technology and Informatics, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong Administrative Region, People's Republic of ChinaDepartment of Health Technology and Informatics, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong Administrative Region, People's Republic of ChinaDepartment of Health Technology and Informatics, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong Administrative Region, People's Republic of ChinaDepartment of Health Technology and Informatics, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong Administrative Region, People's Republic of ChinaDepartment of Health Technology and Informatics, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong Administrative Region, People's Republic of ChinaDepartment of Health Technology and Informatics, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong Administrative Region, People's Republic of ChinaDepartment of Pathology, Princess Margaret Hospital, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, People’s Republic of ChinaDepartment of Pathology, Princess Margaret Hospital, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, People’s Republic of ChinaDepartment of Health Technology and Informatics, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong Administrative Region, People's Republic of ChinaDepartment of Medicine and Geriatrics/Intensive Care Unit, Caritas Medical Centre, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, People’s Republic of ChinaDepartment of Pathology, Princess Margaret Hospital, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, People’s Republic of ChinaState Key Laboratory of Emerging Infectious Diseases, School of Public Health, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, People’s Republic of ChinaDepartment of Pathology, Princess Margaret Hospital, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, People’s Republic of ChinaDepartment of Health Technology and Informatics, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong Administrative Region, People's Republic of ChinaBetween January 2015 and October 2022, 38 patients with culture-confirmed melioidosis were identified in the Kowloon West (KW) Region, Hong Kong. Notably, 30 of them were clustered in the Sham Shui Po (SSP) district, which covers an estimated area of 2.5 km2. Between August and October 2022, 18 patients were identified in this district after heavy rainfall and typhoons. The sudden upsurge in cases prompted an environmental investigation, which involved collecting 20 air samples and 72 soil samples from residential areas near the patients. A viable isolate of Burkholderia pseudomallei was obtained from an air sample collected at a building site five days after a typhoon. B. pseudomallei DNA was also detected in 21 soil samples collected from the building site and adjacent gardening areas using full-length 16S rRNA gene sequencing, suggesting that B. psuedomallei is widely distributed in the soil environment surrounding the district. Core genome-multilocus sequence typing showed that the air sample isolate was phylogenetically clustered with the outbreak isolates in KW Region. Multispectral satellite imagery revealed a continuous reduction in vegetation region in SSP district by 162,255 m2 from 2016 to 2022, supporting the hypothesis of inhalation of aerosols from the contaminated soil as the transmission route of melioidosis during extreme weather events. This is because the bacteria in unvegetated soil are more easily spread by winds. In consistent with inhalational melioidosis, 24 (63.2%) patients had pneumonia. Clinicians should be aware of melioidosis during typhoon season and initiate appropriate investigation and treatment for patients with compatible symptoms.https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/22221751.2023.2204155MelioidosisBurkholderia pseudomalleicore genome-multilocus sequence typingairborne transmissionurban outbreaktyphoon |
| spellingShingle | Wing-Gi Wu Marcus Ho-Hin Shum Ivan Tak-Fai Wong Kelvin Keru Lu Lam-Kwong Lee Jake Siu-Lun Leung Hiu-Yin Lao Annie Wing-Tung Lee Pak-Ting Hau Chloe Toi-Mei Chan Harmen Fung-Tin Wong Sharon Ka-Yee Fung Sally Choi-Ying Wong Iain Chi-Fung Ng Timothy Ting-Leung Ng Ning Chow Alex Yat-Man Ho Mei Fan Hung Franklin Wang-Ngai Chow Maureen Mo-Lin Wong Wing-Kin To Tommy Tsan-Yuk Lam Kristine Shik Luk Gilman Kit-Hang Siu Probable airborne transmission of Burkholderia pseudomallei causing an urban outbreak of melioidosis during typhoon season in Hong Kong, China Emerging Microbes and Infections Melioidosis Burkholderia pseudomallei core genome-multilocus sequence typing airborne transmission urban outbreak typhoon |
| title | Probable airborne transmission of Burkholderia pseudomallei causing an urban outbreak of melioidosis during typhoon season in Hong Kong, China |
| title_full | Probable airborne transmission of Burkholderia pseudomallei causing an urban outbreak of melioidosis during typhoon season in Hong Kong, China |
| title_fullStr | Probable airborne transmission of Burkholderia pseudomallei causing an urban outbreak of melioidosis during typhoon season in Hong Kong, China |
| title_full_unstemmed | Probable airborne transmission of Burkholderia pseudomallei causing an urban outbreak of melioidosis during typhoon season in Hong Kong, China |
| title_short | Probable airborne transmission of Burkholderia pseudomallei causing an urban outbreak of melioidosis during typhoon season in Hong Kong, China |
| title_sort | probable airborne transmission of burkholderia pseudomallei causing an urban outbreak of melioidosis during typhoon season in hong kong china |
| topic | Melioidosis Burkholderia pseudomallei core genome-multilocus sequence typing airborne transmission urban outbreak typhoon |
| url | https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/10.1080/22221751.2023.2204155 |
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