Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection is a leading cause of hospitalization among infants. However, estimates of the RSV hospitalization burden have varied, and precision has been limited by ...the use of age strata grouped in blocks of 6 to ≥ 12 months.
We analyzed data from a 5-year, prospective, population-based surveillance for young children who were hospitalized with laboratory-confirmed (reverse-transcriptase polymerase chain reaction) RSV acute respiratory illness (ARI) during October through March 2000-2005. The total population at risk was stratified by month of age by birth certificate information to yield hospitalization rates.
There were 559 (26%) RSV-infected children among the 2149 enrolled children hospitalized with ARI (85% of all eligible children with ARI). The average RSV hospitalization rate was 5.2 per 1000 children <24 months old. The highest age-specific rate was in infants 1 month old (25.9 per 1000 children). Infants ≤ 2 months of age, who comprised 44% of RSV-hospitalized children, had a hospitalization rate of 17.9 per 1000 children. Most children (79%) were previously healthy. Very preterm infants (<30 weeks' gestation) accounted for only 3% of RSV cases but had RSV hospitalization rates 3 times that of term infants.
Young infants, especially those who were 1 month old, were at greatest risk of RSV hospitalization. Four-fifths of RSV-hospitalized infants were previously healthy. To substantially reduce the burden of RSV hospitalizations, effective general preventive strategies will be required for all young infants, not just those with risk factors.
In this prospective, population-based survey of children under the age of 5 years, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) was shown to be associated with 20% of hospitalizations, 18% of emergency ...department visits, and 15% of office visits for acute respiratory infections during the winter. Only 3% of the outpatient RSV infections were specifically diagnosed.
In children under the age of 5 years, respiratory syncytial virus was shown to be associated with 20% of hospitalizations, 18% of emergency department visits, and 15% of office visits for acute respiratory infections during the winter.
The primary role of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) in causing lower respiratory disease among infants has made its control a worldwide priority.
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However, in the United States, the total burden of RSV infection during the first 5 years of life remains poorly defined, particularly in the outpatient setting. Previous studies have been limited because they were retrospective, of short duration, lacked laboratory confirmation of RSV infection, or focused only on hospitalizations or bronchiolitis.
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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) initiated the New Vaccine Surveillance Network (NVSN), a prospective, population-based inpatient and outpatient surveillance for acute respiratory . . .
Hantavirus pulmonary syndrome remains an uncommon yet emerging viral zoonosis that causes respiratory failure and hemodynamic instability in children and adolescents. Due to its acutely progressive ...course and high mortality rate, clinicians treating hantavirus pulmonary syndrome should understand its epidemiologic risk factors, clinical syndrome and radiographic findings. We present a case of hantavirus pulmonary syndrome in a 14-year-old female from North Dakota who survived the infection without sequelae.
We sought to determine whether maternal vaccination during pregnancy was associated with a reduced risk of laboratory-confirmed influenza hospitalizations in infants <6 months old. Active ...population-based, laboratory-confirmed influenza surveillance was conducted in children hospitalized with fever and/or respiratory symptoms in 3 US counties from November through April during the 2002 through 2009 influenza seasons. The exposure, influenza vaccination during pregnancy, and the outcome, positive/negative influenza testing among their hospitalized infants, were compared using logistic regression analyses. Among 1510 hospitalized infants <6 months old, 151 (10%) had laboratory-confirmed influenza and 294 (19%) mothers reported receiving influenza vaccine during pregnancy. Eighteen (12%) mothers of influenza-positive infants and 276 (20%) mothers of influenza-negative infants were vaccinated (unadjusted odds ratio, 0.53; 95% confidence interval, 0.32–0.88 and adjusted odds ratio, 0.52; 95% confidence interval, 0.30–0.91). Infants of vaccinated mothers were 45-48% less likely to have influenza hospitalizations than infants of unvaccinated mothers. Our results support the current influenza vaccination recommendation for pregnant women.
Human metapneumovirus (HMPV) was identified in 2001 as a cause of respiratory infection. In this study at three U.S. surveillance centers, HPMV was found in 6 to 7% of children (<5 years old) ...admitted to the hospital or seen in outpatient clinics and emergency departments.
Human metapneumovirus (HMPV), a paramyxovirus discovered in 2001, is associated with acute respiratory illness among infants and children worldwide.
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In addition, HMPV causes acute respiratory illness and results in hospitalization among older adults and persons with underlying chronic conditions, including asthma, cancer, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
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However, the seasonality of HMPV disease and its overall burden in hospitalizations and outpatient visits among young children remain poorly defined. Previously published studies have been limited by their retrospective nature,
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the use of data collected from convenience samples over relatively short periods, and the absence of asymptomatic controls.
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Background. Norovirus is a leading cause of acute gastroenteritis (AGE). Noroviruses bind to gut histo-blood group antigens (HBGAs), but only 70%–80% of individuals have a functional copy of the FUT2 ...("secretor") gene required for gut HBGA expression; these individuals are known as "secretors." Susceptibility to some noroviruses depends on FUT2 secretor status, but the population impact of this association is not established. Methods. From December 2011 to November 2012, active AGE surveillance was performed at 6 geographically diverse pediatric sites in the United States. Case patients aged <5 years were recruited from emergency departments and inpatient units; age-matched healthy controls were recruited at well-child visits. Salivary DNA was collected to determine secretor status and genetic ancestry. Stool was tested for norovirus by real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. Norovirus genotype was then determined by sequencing. Results. Norovirus was detected in 302 of 1465 (21%) AGE cases and 52 of 826 (6%) healthy controls. Norovirus AGE cases were 2.8-fold more likely than norovirus-negative controls to be secretors (P < .001) in a logistic regression model adjusted for ancestry, age, site, and health insurance. Secretors comprised all 155 cases and 21 asymptomatic infections with the most prevalent norovirus, GII.4. Control children of Meso-American ancestry were more likely than children of European or African ancestry to be secretors (96% vs 74%; P < .001). Conclusions. FUT2 status is associated with norovirus infection and varies by ancestry. GII.4 norovirus exclusively infected secretors. These findings are important to norovirus vaccine trials and design of agents that may block norovirus-HBGA binding.
CrAssphage is a recently discovered human gut-associated bacteriophage. To validate the potential use of crAssphage for detecting human fecal contamination on environmental surfaces and hands, we ...tested stool samples (n = 60), hand samples (n = 30), and environmental swab samples (n = 201) from 17 norovirus outbreaks for crAssphage by real-time PCR. In addition, we tested stool samples from healthy persons (n = 173), respiratory samples (n = 113), and animal fecal specimens (n = 68) and further sequenced positive samples. Overall, we detected crAssphage in 71.4% of outbreak stool samples, 48%-68.5% of stool samples from healthy persons, 56.2% of environmental swabs, and 60% of hand rinse samples, but not in human respiratory samples or animal fecal samples. CrAssphage sequences could be grouped into 2 major genetic clusters. Our data suggest that crAssphage could be used to detect human fecal contamination on environmental surfaces and hands.
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DOBA, IZUM, KILJ, NUK, ODKLJ, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SIK, UILJ, UKNU, UL, UM, UPUK
Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a major cause of hospitalized acute respiratory illness (ARI) among young children. With RSV vaccines and immunoprophylaxis agents in clinical development, we ...sought to update estimates of US pediatric RSV hospitalization burden.
Children <5 years old hospitalized for ARI were enrolled through active, prospective, population-based surveillance from November 1, 2015, to June 30, 2016, at 7 US pediatric hospital sites. Clinical information was obtained from parent interviews and medical records. Midturbinate nasal and throat flocked swabs were collected and tested for RSV by using molecular diagnostic assays at each site. We conducted descriptive analyses and calculated population-based rates of RSV-associated hospitalizations.
Among 2969 hospitalized children included in analyses, 1043 (35%) tested RSV-positive; 903 (87%) children who were RSV-positive were <2 years old, and 526 (50%) were <6 months old. RSV-associated hospitalization rates were 2.9 per 1000 children <5 years old and 14.7 per 1000 children <6 months old; the highest age-specific rate was observed in 1-month-old infants (25.1 per 1000). Most children who were infected with RSV (67%) had no underlying comorbid conditions and no history of preterm birth.
During the 2015-2016 season, RSV infection was associated with one-third of ARI hospitalizations in our study population of young children. Hospitalization rates were highest in infants <6 months. Most children who were RSV-positive had no history of prematurity or underlying medical conditions, suggesting that all young children could benefit from targeted interventions against RSV.
IMPORTANCE: Childhood community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is usually treated with 10 days of antibiotics. Shorter courses may be effective with fewer adverse effects and decreased potential for ...antibiotic resistance. OBJECTIVE: To compare a short (5-day) vs standard (10-day) antibiotic treatment strategy for CAP in young children. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: Randomized double-blind placebo-controlled clinical trial in outpatient clinic, urgent care, or emergency settings in 8 US cities. A total of 380 healthy children aged 6 to 71 months with nonsevere CAP demonstrating early clinical improvement were enrolled from December 2, 2016, to December 16, 2019. Data were analyzed from January to September 2020. INTERVENTION: On day 6 of their originally prescribed therapy, participants were randomized 1:1 to receive 5 days of matching placebo or 5 additional days of the same antibiotic. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: The primary end point was the end-of-treatment response adjusted for duration of antibiotic risk (RADAR), a composite end point that ranks each child’s clinical response, resolution of symptoms, and antibiotic-associated adverse effects in an ordinal desirability of outcome ranking (DOOR). Within each DOOR rank, participants were further ranked by the number of antibiotic days, assuming that shorter antibiotic durations were more desirable. Using RADAR, the probability of a more desirable outcome was estimated for the short- vs standard-course strategy. In a subset of children, throat swabs were collected between study days 19 and 25 to quantify antibiotic resistance genes in oropharyngeal flora. RESULTS: A total of 380 children (189 randomized to short course and 191 randomized to standard course) made up the study population. The mean (SD) age was 35.7 (17.2) months, and 194 participants (51%) were male. Of the included children, 8 were Asian, 99 were Black or African American, 234 were White, 32 were multiracial, and 7 were of unknown or unreported race; 33 were Hispanic or Latino, 344 were not Hispanic or Latino, and 3 were of unknown or unreported ethnicity. There were no differences between strategies in the DOOR or its individual components. Fewer than 10% of children in either strategy had an inadequate clinical response. The short-course strategy had a 69% (95% CI, 63-75) probability of a more desirable RADAR outcome compared with the standard-course strategy. A total of 171 children were included in the resistome analysis. The median (range) number of antibiotic resistance genes per prokaryotic cell (RGPC) was significantly lower in the short-course strategy compared with the standard-course strategy for total RGPC (1.17 0.35-2.43 vs 1.33 0.46-11.08; P = .01) and β-lactamase RGPC (0.55 0.18-1.24 vs 0.60 0.21-2.45; P = .03). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: In this study, among children responding to initial treatment for outpatient CAP, a 5-day antibiotic strategy was superior to a 10-day strategy. The shortened approach resulted in similar clinical response and antibiotic-associated adverse effects, while reducing antibiotic exposure and resistance. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02891915.
IMPORTANCE: A genetic polymorphism affecting FUT2 secretor status in approximately one-quarter of humans of European descent affects the expression of histo-blood group antigens on the mucosal ...epithelia of human respiratory, genitourinary, and digestive tracts. These histo-blood group antigens serve as host receptor sites necessary for attachment and infection of some pathogens, including norovirus. OBJECTIVE: We investigated whether an association exists between FUT2 secretor status and laboratory-confirmed rotavirus infections in US children. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: Multicenter case-control observational study involving active surveillance at 6 US pediatric medical institutions in the inpatient and emergency department clinical settings. We enrolled 1564 children younger than 5 years with acute gastroenteritis (diarrhea and/or vomiting) and 818 healthy controls frequency matched by age and month, from December 1, 2011, through March 31, 2013. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES: Paired fecal-saliva specimens were tested for rotavirus and for secretor status. Comparisons were made between rotavirus test–positive cases and healthy controls stratified by ethnicity and vaccination status. Adjusted multivariable analyses assessed the preventive association of secretor status against severe rotavirus gastroenteritis. RESULTS: One (0.5%) of 189 rotavirus test–positive cases was a nonsecretor, compared with 188 (23%) of 818 healthy control participants (P < .001). Healthy control participants of Hispanic ethnicity were significantly less likely to be nonsecretors (13%) compared with healthy children who were not of Hispanic ethnicity (25%) (P < .001). After controlling for vaccination and other factors, children with the nonsecretor FUT2 polymorphism appeared statistically protected (98% 95% CI, 84%-100%) against severe rotavirus gastroenteritis. CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: Severe rotavirus gastroenteritis was virtually absent among US children who had a genetic polymorphism that inactivates FUT2 expression on the intestinal epithelium. We observed a strong epidemiologic association among children with rotavirus gastroenteritis compared with healthy control participants. The exact cellular mechanism behind this epidemiologic association remains unclear, but evidence suggests that it may be rotavirus genotype specific. The lower prevalence of nonsecretors among Hispanic children may translate to an enhanced burden of rotavirus gastroenteritis among this group. Our findings may have bearing on our full understanding of rotavirus infections and the effects of vaccination in diverse populations.
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