Clinical characteristics of respiratory virus infection in children admitted to an intensive care unit

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: To investigate the clinical characteristics and the risk factors for mechanical ventilator treatment and incidence of complications in children admitted to an intensive care unit (ICU) with detected respiratory viruses. METHODS: Eighty-two patients who were detected respiratory viruses by multiplex real-time polymerase chain reaction from nasopharyngeal aspirates were enrolled among the 123 children admitted to ICU with acute respiratory manifestations during the study period from January 2006 to December 2012. RESULTS: Detection rate of respiratory viruses were 66% and 13 patients (16%) had two viruses isolated. The most common respiratory virus isolated was respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) (35%) followed by rhinovirus (19%), adenovirus (13%), parainfluenza virus (11%), influenza virus (11%), human metapneumovirus (6%), and human coronavirus (5%). Pneumonia (70%) was the most common clinical diagnosis. The mean age of patient with RSV infection was the youngest and with influenza virus infection was the oldest among other viruses infection (mean+/-standard deviation, 5.9+/-10.1 months vs. 51.0+/-26.1 months; P=0.01). Forty Patients (49%) who had the underlying diseases were not associated with incidence of mechanical ventilator treatment and complications. Bacterial coinfection with respiratory virus was the significant risk factor of mechanical ventilator care and incidence of complications (odds ratio [OR], 50.003; 95% confidence interval [CI], 3.955-632.144; P=0.003, and OR, 15,569; 95% CI, 1.803-134.452; P=0.013). CONCLUSION: The significant morbidity of pediatric patient admitted to ICU with respiratory virus infection (RVI) was associated with bacterial coinfection. Furthermore, multicenter study should be performed to investigate the epidemiology of RVI in pediatric patients admitted to ICU in domestic.