Dr. Charles "Pat" Davis, MD, PhD, is a board certified Emergency Medicine doctor who currently practices as a consultant and staff member for hospitals. He has a PhD in Microbiology (UT at Austin), and the MD (Univ. Texas Medical Branch, Galveston). He is a Clinical Professor (retired) in the Division of Emergency Medicine, UT Health Science Center at San Antonio, and has been the Chief of Emergency Medicine at UT Medical Branch and at UTHSCSA with over 250 publications.
Mary D. Nettleman, MD, MS, MACP is the Chair of the Department of Medicine at Michigan State University. She is a graduate of Vanderbilt Medical School, and completed her residency in Internal Medicine and a fellowship in Infectious Diseases at Indiana University.
Adenovirus 14 (Ad14) is
termed the killer cold virus because of the high incidence of hospitalizations
and deaths attributed to the viral strain.
Ad14 viruses are passed
person to person or picked up from items touched by infected people and then
initially invade cells in the eye, nose, or mouth that subsequently allow
further spread to other body organs.
Symptoms and signs resemble those of a
cold (cough, runny nose, mild fever) for about three to five days; the majority of people
clear the disease, but up to about 40% may need hospitalization with severe
symptoms of pneumonia, shortness of breath; other organ related symptoms may
develop such as eye, bladder, and GI problems.
Ad14 is presumptively diagnosed
by history, physical exam, X-ray, and association with Ad14-diagnosed patients;
definitive diagnosis is completed with isolation of the virus from the patient,
a rising titer of antibodies against Ad14, immunofluorescence of Ad14 virus
particles in tissues, or fluids and PCR tests.
Treatments are mainly supportive;
antivirals have been used by some clinicians but there are no studies that prove
efficacy, only case reports.
Complications of Ad14 are related to the severity
of infection; the majority of patients have no complications but hospitalized
patients may have mild to serious complications which are related to the organ
system most damaged (eyes, GI tract, bladder and most notably, lung problems
such as ARDS that may lead to death).
The majority of patients have an
excellent prognosis; however, about 40% of infected patients may have a wide
range of outcomes from good to poor, depending on the severity of the Ad14
infection.
Ad14 infections can be reduced or prevented by careful hygiene
methods; there is no vaccine currently available against Ad14.
Reviewed by Mary D. Nettleman, MD, MS, MACP on 6/20/2011
Adenoviruses are spread like the common cold. The viruses can be spread from
person to person via coughing or sneezing. People may also become infected by
touching something with adenovirus on it and then touching their mouth, nose, or
eyes. For example, adenoviruses can be transferred to a doorknob when an
infected person sneezes into his/her hands and then touches the doorknob before
washing. Germs can also be spread if an infected person sneezes or coughs onto
tabletops or other items that might be touched by other people. To prevent the
spread of disease, it is important to
practice good health habits.
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