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Case 13 CONFIRMED |
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| Characteristics | 43-year-old female, employed as postal worker (mail sorter) |
| Onset date | October 15, 2001 |
| Medical care date | October 16, 2001 |
| MMWR date | 50 (43), Nov. 2, 2001 |
| Location | Hamilton Township mail center, New Jersey |
| Probable source | Daschle or Leahy letters postmarked October 9 |
| Disease type | Inhalational anthrax |
| Details | On October 15, a 43-year-old female postal
worker who worked at a facility in which anthrax cases have been documented
developed fever, headache, chills, and shortness of breath. She was treated
with levofloxacin, but her symptoms progressed and she was admitted to a
hospital on October 18. A chest radiograph indicated a right perihilar
infiltrate and a small pleural effusion. She was started on multidrug
therapy, including ciprofloxacin, which was changed to azithromycin after 24
hours. On admission, she was febrile and tachycardic. She had an elevated
white blood cell (WBC) count of 11,000 with 14% bands. A CT scan on October
19 showed a right pleural effusion, perihilar consolidation, and mediastinal
adenopathy. She subsequently had two thoracenteses that produced
serosanguinous pleural fluid and a bronchoscopy that showed grossly
edematous bronchi. Both pleural fluid and bronchial biopsy were positive for
B. anthracis by IHC stain. She was discharged on October 23, 2001.
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| Death date | Not applicable |
