Abstract
BackgroundLower respiratory tract infection (LRTI) is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in children. Human rhinovirus (HRV) is confirmed to be associated with pediatric lower respiratory tract infection. Seasonal and meteorological factors may play a key role in the epidemiology of HRV. The purposes of this study were to investigate the frequency, seasonal distribution, and clinical characteristics of hospitalized children with LRTI caused by HRVs. In addition, associations between incidence of HRVs and meteorological factors in a subtropical region of China were discussed.MethodsHospitalized children <14 years old admitted to the Respiratory Department of the Children’s Hospital, which is affiliated to Soochow University, between January 1, 2013 and December 31, 2015, were enrolled in this study. Multi-pathogens were detected in nasopharyngeal aspirate samples. Meanwhile, meteorological factors were recorded.ResultsThe average incidence of HRVs infection was 11.4% (707/6194) and 240 cases of which were co-infection cases with other pathogens. Children with co-infection presented more frequent fever and tachypnea compared to children infected with HRVs only (both P < 0.05). Among 707 HRV positive children, the mean age was 23.2 months (range 1 to 140 months). Among all respiratory infections, the highest incidence of HRVs cases occurred in children age 13–36 months old (15.1%, 203/1341). Of all 228 HRV cases in 2014, 85 cases (37.3%) were HRV-C positive. HRVs and HRV-C infection occurred throughout the year during the study period, although a higher incidence was observed in summer and autumn seasons. HRVs or HRV-C incidence in hospitalized children with LRTI was associated with the monthly mean temperature (both P < 0.05).ConclusionHRV was one of the most common viral pathogen detected in hospitalized children with LRTI at the Children’s Hospital of Suzhou, China, and had its own seasonal distribution including HRV-C, which was partly caused by temperature.
Highlights
Lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI) is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in children
Viral and atypical bacterial etiology of LRTIs A total of 6196 nasopharyngeal aspirate (NPA) samples were available and 276 children were not enrolled because of a refusal to participate from their parent or presenting underlying disease
Demographic and clinical characteristics of children infected by Human rhinovirus (HRV) with or without co-infection Of the 707 HRV positive cases, the mean age was 23.2 months and the ratio of male to female was 2.3:1 and slightly higher than 1.7:1 of non-HRV infected cases (P = 0.052)
Summary
Lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI) is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in children. Human rhinovirus (HRV) is confirmed to be associated with pediatric lower respiratory tract infection. The purposes of this study were to investigate the frequency, seasonal distribution, and clinical characteristics of hospitalized children with LRTI caused by HRVs. In addition, associations between incidence of HRVs and meteorological factors in a subtropical region of China were discussed. Recent studies show that meteorological factors have the greatest potential to play key roles in epidemics and seasonality of respiratory virus infection [13,14,15]. Among these meteorological factors, temperature and humidity are frequently associated with respiratory virus infection. Few studies investigated the association between HRVs activity and meteorological factors in subtropical area of China
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