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Between March and July 2009, an acute febrile illness associated with thrombocytopenia was reported in central China. Infection with Anaplasma phagocytophilum was initially suspected but was not supported by laboratory testing. Instead, a novel virus in the Bunyaviridae family, designated “severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome virus” (SFTSV), was isolated from a patient's blood. Heightened surveillance was instituted in nearby provinces to detect additional cases.
To further investigate the potential pathogen and to characterize the clinical manifestations and epidemiology of the illness, researchers studied patients hospitalized between June 2009 and September 2010 who fulfilled the case definition (acute fever ≥38°C and thrombocytope…