Molecular epidemiology of influenza, RSV, and other respiratory infections among children in Qatar: A six years report (2012–2017)

Abstract

Background: Studies on the etiology of respiratory infections among children in Qatar and surrounding countries are limited. Objectives: To describe the prevalence and seasonality of RSV, influenza, and other respiratory pathogens among children in Qatar. Methods: We retrospectively collected and analyzed data of 33,404 children (<15 years) presented with influenza-like illness from 2012 to 2017. Results: At least one respiratory pathogen was detected in 26,138 (78%) of patients. Together, human rhinoviruses (HRV), respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), and influenza viruses comprised nearly two-thirds of all cases, affecting 24%, 19.7%, and 18.5%, respectively. A prevalence of 5-10% was recorded for adenovirus, parainfluenza viruses (PIVs), human bocavirus (HboV), and human coronaviruses (HCoVs). Human metapneumovirus (HMPV), enteroviruses, M. pneumonia, and parechovirus had prevalences below 5%. While RSV, influenza, and HMPV exhibited strong seasonal activity in the winter, HRV was active during low RSV and influenza circulation. The burden of RSV exceeds that of influenza among young age groups, whereas influenza correlated positively with age. Further, HRV, adenovirus, influenza, and RSV infection rates varied significantly between male and females. Conclusion: This comprehensive multi-year study provides insights into the etiology of ILI among children in Qatar, which represents the Gulf region. Our results reinforce the significance of active surveillance of respiratory pathogens to improve infection prevention and control strategies, particularly among children.

Global Seasonality of Human Coronaviruses: A Systematic Review

“…Two studies used surveillance samples [ 21 , 26 ]. Sixteen studies reported HCoV infection by screening all 4 subtypes of virus [ 5 , 7 , 9–11 , 13 , 14 , 16–22 , 24 , 25 ]. The range of proportions of positive specimens was 0.2%–18.4% (median: 4.45%) ( Table 2 ).…”

“…A small number of studies reported peaks during summer months (June, 4.1%; July, 4.1%; and August, 2.0%) [ 5 , 6 , 13 , 14 , 17 ]. Around 38.8% of observation periods showed that more than 5% of specimens tested positive for HCoVs in February and March [ 5 , 7 , 8 , 10–12 , 16 , 17 , 19–26 ]. Around 10 to 22% of observation periods showed that more than 5% of specimens had positive test results during fall (September, 10.2%; October, 12.2%; and November, 22.4%) [ 5–8 , 10 , 12 , 17 , 19 , 20 , 23 , 25 ].…”

“…Around 10 to 22% of observation periods showed that more than 5% of specimens had positive test results during fall (September, 10.2%; October, 12.2%; and November, 22.4%) [ 5–8 , 10 , 12 , 17 , 19 , 20 , 23 , 25 ]. Some research that studied children only showed higher HCoV positivity rate (median: 5.9%, range: 0.9%–18.4%) [ 5 , 7 , 15 , 17 , 19 , 20 , 23 , 24 ] than the studies of adults alone (median: 5.2%, range: 3.3%–7.1%) [ 6 , 10 ] or the general populations (median: 1.9%, range: 0.2%–8.1%) [ 8 , 9 , 11 , 13 , 14 , 16 , 18 , 21 , 22 , 25 , 26 ].…”

“…First, by comparing proportions of individuals who tested positive for HCoV, rather than the total number of HCoV cases, the observed seasonal patterns may have been driven by periodic changes in other respiratory pathogens. Moreover, we did not distinguish between temporal trends of the annual and seasonal occurrences in studies that presented aggregated data on given seasons [ 7 ]. However, we found similar results when we compared differences in the total number of HCoV cases.…”

Epidemiology and Seasonality of Childhood Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infections in the Tropics

“…In some studies, RSV detection was more than 3 times greater than the next leading pathogen [ 14 ]. Reported RSV positivity rates in tropical Asian countries range from 9% to 50% depending on the geographic location and sample population ( Table 1 ) [ 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 , 26 , 27 , 28 , 29 , 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 ]. Not unexpectedly, an increased risk for RSV infection has been noted in infants with chronic lung disease, neurodevelopmental conditions and congenital heart disease, with repeated infections associated with asthma and atopy among the children and their families [ 15 ].…”