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Environmental surveillance for poliovirus is increasingly used in poliovirus eradication efforts as a supplement to acute flaccid paralysis (AFP) surveillance. Environmental surveillance was officially established in 2017 in Senegal, where no poliovirus had been detected since 2010. We tested sewage samples from 2 sites in Dakar monthly for polioviruses. We identified a vaccine-derived poliovirus serotype 2 on January 19, 2021, from a sample collected on December 24, 2020; by December 31, 2021, we had detected 70 vaccine-derived poliovirus serotype 2 isolates circulating in 7 of 14 regions in Senegal. Sources included 18 AFP cases, 20 direct contacts, 17 contacts in the community, and 15 sewage samples. Phylogenetic analysis revealed the circulation of 2 clusters and provided evidence on the virus introduction from Guinea. Because novel oral polio vaccine serotype 2 was used for response activities throughout Senegal, we recommend expanding environmental surveillance into other regions.

Abstract Objective Transmission of wild polioviruses (WPVs) and vaccine-derived polioviruses (VDPVs) have been interrupted in Cameroon since July 2014. Subsequently, Cameroon withdrew Sabin type 2 from routine immunization in April 2016. This study aimed to investigate the detection rates and overtime distribution of the types of PVs recovered from urban sewage in Cameroon. Results From January 2016 to December 2017, 517 sewage specimens originating from Yaounde (325 specimens) and Douala (192 specimens) were analyzed. No WPVs and VDPVs were isolated in this study. In contrast, vaccine strains of poliovirus were detected throughout the study period. Isolates Sabin types 1 and 3 were sporadically detected whereas Sabin 2 was found only from January to May 2016 both in Yaounde and Douala. The absence of Sabin 2 in sewage specimens since June 2016 indicates its rapid disappearance after withdrawal from routine immunization in April 2016. This study provides substantial support to the observation that WPV and VDPVs have been successfully eliminated in Cameroon. However, it remains essential to maintain and extend high quality environmental surveillance as long as WPV reservoirs and VDPV outbreaks are detected in Africa.

From February to August 2003, 38 persons were infected with Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF) virus in Mauritania; 35 of these persons were residents of Nouakchott. The first patient was a young woman who became ill shortly after butchering a goat. She transmitted the infection to 15 persons in the hospital where she was admitted and four members of her family. In Nouakchott, two disease clusters and 11 isolated cases were identified. The case-fatality ratio was 28.6%. Of the patients not infected by the first case-patient, almost half were butchers, which suggests that the primary mode of animal-to-human transmission was direct contact with blood of infected animals. The hospital outbreak alerted health authorities to sporadic cases that occurred in the following weeks, which would have probably gone otherwise unnoticed. Studies must be conducted to determine the potential risk for continued sporadic outbreaks of CCHF in humans and to propose prevention measures.

BACKGROUND: Global poliomyelitis eradication initiative relies on (i) laboratory based surveillance of acute flaccid surveillance (AFP) to monitor the circulation of wild poliovirus in a population, and (ii) vaccination to prevent its diffusion. However, as poliovirus can survive in the environment namely in sewage, environmental surveillance (ES) is of growing importance as the eradication target is close. This study aimed to assess polioviruses and non polio enteroviruses circulation in sewage drains covering a significant population of Dakar. METHODS: from April 2007 to May 2013, 271 specimens of raw sewage were collected using the grab method in 6 neighborhoods of Dakar. Samples were processed to extract and concentrate viruses using polyethylene glycol and Dextran (two-phase separation method). Isolation of enteroviruses was attempted in RD, L20B and Hep2 cell lines. Polioviruses were identified by RT-PCR and Elisa. Non Polio Enteroviruses (NPEVs) were identified by RT-PCR and microneutralisation tests. RESULTS: polioviruses and NPEVs were respectively detected in 34,3% and 42,8% sewage samples. No wild poliovirus neither circulating vaccine-derived Poliovirus (cVDPV) was detected. Neutralization assays have identified 49 non polio enteroviruses that were subsequently classified in 13 serotypes belonging to HEV-A (22, 4%), HEV-B (12, 24%), HEV-C (26, 53%) and HEV-D (6, 12%) species. CONCLUSION: this study is the first documentation of enteroviruses environmental detection in Senegal. It shows the usefulness of environmental surveillance for indirect monitoring of the circulation and distribution of enteroviruses in the community.

In October 2003, 9 human cases of hemorrhagic fever were reported in 3 provinces of Mauritania, West Africa. Test results showed acute Rift Valley fever virus (RVFV) infection, and a field investigation found recent circulation of RVFV with a prevalence rate of 25.5% (25/98) and 4 deaths among the 25 laboratory-confirmed case-patients. Immunoglobulin M against RVFV was found in 46% (25/54) of domestic animals. RVFV was also isolated from the mosquito species Culex poicilipes. Genetic comparison of virion segments indicated little variation among the strains isolated. However, phylogenetic studies clearly demonstrated that these strains belonged to the East-Central African lineage for all segments. To our knowledge, this is the first time viruses of this lineage have been observed in an outbreak in West Africa. Whether these strains were introduced or are endemic in West Africa remains to be determined.