The picornaviruses of epidemic conjunctivitis

Abstract

The pandemic of acute conjunctivitis in Southeast Asia in 1970 and 1971 appeared in Singapore in September 1970. The clinical features of the outbreak and the isolation of the virus responsible were reported in 1971. The following year a second outbreak with similar clinical features appeared in June and lasted till December 1971. This paper reports the laboratory findings on specimens collected during 1971 and compares the Singapore epidemic conjunctivitis viruses, isolated from the 1970 and 1971 outbreaks, with the Japanese acute hemorrhagic conjunctivitis virus isolated in Japan in 1971.