Case 20 CONFIRMED

An additional case of inhalational anthrax was confirmed in a 59-year-old postal worker in a U.S. State Department mail sorting facility in Sterling that received mail from the District of Columbia postal facility associated with the previous four cases. The patient presented to an emergency department on October 24 with temperature of 100.8 F (38 C), sweats, myalgia, chest discomfort, mild cough, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and abdominal pain. A chest radiograph initially was interpreted as normal but on further review indicated mediastinal widening. A CT scan showed mediastinal lymphadenopathy, hemorrhagic mediastinitis, small bilateral pleural effusions, and a small pericardial effusion. Blood cultures grew B. anthracis. The patient is receiving ciprofloxacin, rifampin, and penicillin (was discharged Nov. 9, 2001)

Click for clinical details from Emerging Inf Diseases

Click for news account of un-named case (10/26/01)

Click for news account of hospital discharge (11/10/01)

Click for update on search for exposure letter (11/14/01)

Click for news account of letter mix-up and likely infection source (11/20/01)

Click for news account of David Hose (12/6/01)

Click for six-month follow-up of David Hose (4/20/02)

Click for clinical and personal follow-up (5/4/02)

Click for further clinical and personal follow-up (5/7/02)

Click for news of health follow-up of David Hose (9/16/02)

Click for one year health follow-up of David Hose (10/1/02)

Click for pneumonia hospitalization of David Hose (11/7/02)

Click for news account of anthrax impact on David Hose's life (11/9/02)

Click for two-year follow-up of David Hose's illness (9/18/03)

Click for brief  three and a half-year follow-up of David Hose's illness (6/7/05)

Click for follow-up of David Hose nearly seven years later (8/02/08)