Adenoviral Conjunctivitis in the Andaman Islands: A Clinical and Molecular Epidemiological Study

Abstract

Human adenoviruses are common causes of many acute illnesses, and keratoconjunctivitis is one of them. Acute infections, if left untreated, can progress to severity, thus causing morbidities and mortalities. It belongs to the mastadenovirus family and is characterized by seven subgenus, i.e., A-G; among those, Adenovirus D8 is the most common type associated with keratoconjunctivitis. MethodologyA hospital-based study was conducted, and the samples were collected from GB Pant Hospital, Port Blair, Dr Agarwals Eye Hospital, Port Blair, from August 2017 to December 2022. Clinical data and demographic details were followed by conjunctival swab sample collection from suspected keratoconjunctivitis patients. Samples were subjected to molecular screening, and Sanger sequencing was carried out for positive samples. ResultsOut of 506 conjunctival samples, a prevalence of 24.9% (n=126) was observed, and the commonest type circulating among the population of Andaman was Adenovirus D8. The major symptoms associated were eye redness (87.30%, n=110), followed by watering (81.75%, n=103), eye pain (72.22%, n=91), eye itching (61.11%, n=77), and discharge (50%, n=63). ConclusionIn clinical research, ocular infections are one of the underrated fields. However, the study revealed the high prevalence of adenoviral infection among the suspected patients. Thus, there is a need for proper surveillance and timely diagnosis of such infections, as their severity may lead to loss of vision.