Abstract
Respiratory viruses are a common cause of respiratory tract infection (RTI), particularly in neonates and children. Rapid and accurate diagnosis of viral infections could improve clinical outcomes and reduce the use of antibiotics and treatment sessions. Advances in diagnostic technology contribute to the accurate detection of viruses. We performed a multiplex real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to investigate the viral etiology in pediatric patients and compared the detection rates with those determined using traditional antigen tests and virus cultures. Fifteen respiratory viruses were included in our investigation: respiratory syncytial virus A/B (RSV), influenza virus A (FluA) and influenza virus B (FluB), human metapneumovirus (MPV), enterovirus (EV), human parainfluenza virus (PIV) types 1–4, human rhinovirus (RV), human coronavirus OC43, NL63, and 229E, human adenovirus (ADV), and human bocavirus (Boca). In total, 474 specimens were collected and tested. Respiratory viruses were detected more frequently by PCR (357, 75.3%) than they were by traditional tests (229, 49.3%). The leading pathogens were RSV (113, 23.8%), RV (72, 15.2%), PIV3 (53, 11.2%), FluA (51, 10.8%), and ADV (48, 10.1%). For children younger than 5 years, RSV and RV were most prevalent; for children older than 5 years, FluA and ADV were the most frequently detected. Of the specimens, 25.8% (92/357) were coinfected with two or more viruses. RV, Boca, PIV2, FluB, and PIV4 had higher rates of coinfection; MPV and PIV1 had the lowest rates of coinfection (9.1% and 5.3%). To conclude, the detection power of PCR was better than that of traditional antigen tests and virus cultures when considering the detection of respiratory viruses. RSV and RV were the leading viral pathogens identified in the respiratory specimens. One-quarter of the positive specimens were coinfected with two or more viruses. In the future, further application of PCR may contribute to the rapid and accurate diagnosis of respiratory viruses and could improve patient outcomes.
Highlights
Respiratory viruses are ubiquitous and cause a large variety of clinical symptoms
Our study showed a high detectability of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for respiratory viruses, suggesting that PCR-based diagnostic tools may be helpful for detecting a wider range of respiratory viruses
The use of PCR resulted in greater detection of respiratory viruses than the use of traditional rapid antigen tests or viral cultures
Summary
Respiratory viruses are ubiquitous and cause a large variety of clinical symptoms. Respiratory tract infection (RTI) is undoubtedly common, and the recognition of a causative pathogen contributes to the appropriate management [1]. In addition to the well-known respiratory viruses, such as respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and influenza virus, human metapneumovirus (MPV) was identified in 2001, followed by the discovery of other respiratory viruses [2,3]. The disease burden of respiratory viruses is beyond our knowledge. Respiratory viruses have been detected in more than two-thirds of children with radiographically confirmed community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) [4]. In the United States, molecular diagnostics revealed viral infection in 43%–67% of pediatric CAP cases [5]
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