Table 3.
Key infection control information for selected highly communicable emerging infectious diseases
| Characteristic | Lassa fever | Ebola virus disease | MERS | SARS | Novel influenza A |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Virus | |||||
| Year identified | 1969 | 1976 | 2012 | 2003 | |
| Family | Arenaviridae | Filoviridae | Coronaviridae | Coronaviridae | Orthomyxoviridae |
| Genome | RNA | RNA | RNA | RNA | RNA |
| Coat | Enveloped | Enveloped | Enveloped | Enveloped | Enveloped |
| Epidemiology | |||||
| Endemic location | West Africa | West and Central Africa | Middle East | China | Worldwide (location varies with strain) |
| Prevalence | 100,000-300,000 cases per year | No recent human cases | Varies by strain | ||
| Reservoir | Rodent (rat) | Bats (fruit) | Bats, camels (intermediate host) | Bats, palm civet | Migratory birds, pigs |
| Transmission | Inhalation, ingestion, contact (nonintact skin) | Contact (nonintact skin, mucous membranes, sexual) | Droplet, contact, airborne | Inhalation, contact | |
| Incubation period (d) | 10 (range, 6-21) | 6-12 (range, 2-21) | 2-15 | 2-14 (range, 2-21) | Varies by strain |
| Infectivity, Rho | Not determined | 1.5-2.0 | 0.3-1.3 | 2.2-3.7 (range, 0.3-4.1) | Varies by strain |
| Duration, maximum (d) | 28 | 21 | |||
| Case fatality rate | 15%-20%, hospitalized patients | ~50% (range, 25%-90%) | >35% | ~10% | |
| Biologic safety | |||||
| Biothreat level | A | A | Not specified | C | C (some strains) |
| Biosafety level | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 2-3 |
| Clinical | |||||
| Therapy | Ribavirin | Supportive | Supportive | Supportive | Neuraminidase inhibitors |
| Infection control | |||||
| Isolation | Contact, droplet, airborne for aerosol-generating procedures | Contact, droplet, airborne for aerosol-generating procedures | Contact, airborne | Contact, airborne | Droplet, airborne for aerosol-generating procedures |
| Pre-exposure prophylaxis, vaccine | No | No | No | No | Yes (some strains) |
| Postexposure prophylaxis | No | No | No | No | Yes (antivirals) |