ABSTRACT
We describe a case of probable prolonged severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) Alpha(B.1.1.7) variant shedding for 221 days from the diagnosis, in a healthy 20-year-old Japanese pregnant woman with a normal delivery. To our knowledge, this is the longest duration of SARS-CoV-2 shedding reported in an immunocompetent individual to date.
Subject(s)
COVID-19 , Pregnancy Complications, Infectious , Adult , COVID-19/diagnosis , Female , Humans , Pregnancy , Pregnancy Complications, Infectious/diagnosis , Pregnant Women , RNA, Viral , SARS-CoV-2 , Virus Shedding , Young AdultABSTRACT
The cause of acute respiratory disease first reported in December 2019 in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China, was a coronavirus called "SARS-CoV-2", which quickly spread throughout the world. In Japan, 8,116 people, including cruise ship passengers and crew, have been infected (as of 10:30 a.m., April 13), and the number of infected people is rapidly increasing (Table 1). Notably, the basal reproduction number (infectivity) of this infection is estimated R0 2.0-2.5 [Report of the WHO-China Joint Mission on CoronavirusDisease 2019 (February 16-24, 2020)], which is slightly higher than the usual influenza (measles: 12-18, rubella: 5-7, influenza/Spanish flu: 2-3). In addition to droplet and contact infections, aerosol infections have been pointed out as possible routes of infection. Coronaviruses can survive on metal, glass, and plastic surfaces for up to 9 days at room temperature, and have been found to infect health care workers who are supposed to be on the defensive. In particular, the risk of coronavirus exposure among dentists is the most serious in all industries. What should the dental office do about this infection? In this issue, we introduce a special part of this series, "Emergency Contribution: Countermeasures for novel Coronavirus Infection in Dental Clinics.