Comparison of the risk of infection of human rotavirus and astrovirus according to fishing and swimming activities at Las Cañas beach, Uruguay

Abstract

Aims:To estimate the risk of human rotavirus (RV) and astrovirus (HAstV) infections for swimmers and fishers at Las Cañas beach, Uruguay. Methods and Results: Surface water samples were collected monthly for 1 year.The dose-response models used were β-Poisson and 1 F 1 hypergeometric for RV and HAstV, respectively. The probabilities of infection were calculated using a kernel density estimate to fitting the data and then sampling from this distribution (Monte Carlo simulation). The probability of RV infection for fishers was between 0 and 65% and for swimmers was between 0 and 50% (<18 years old) and between 0 and 38% (>18 years old). For HAstV, the probability of infection for fishers was between 0% and 45% and for swimmers was between 0 and 38% (<18 years old) and between 0 and 18% (>18 years old). Conclusions:This study suggests that fishers are at higher risk of infection for both viruses compared with swimmers mainly due to higher viral frequency and concentration at the site for fishing activities.

Epidemiology Update of Hepatitis E Virus (HEV) in Uruguay: Subtyping, Environmental Surveillance and Zoonotic Transmission

“…Additionally, a total of 33 surface water samples from Las Cañas Beach and Frigorífico del Anglo area were included in the analysis [ 33 ]. As previously reported, these samples were collected monthly from May 2018 to April 2019.…”