Changes in the Epidemiology of Respiratory Pathogens in Children during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

ABSTRACT

Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, a significant decrease in non-COVID-19 respiratory illnesses were observed, suggesting that the implementation of measures against COVID-19 affected the transmission of other respiratory pathogens. The aim of this study was to highlight the changes in the epidemiology of respiratory pathogens in children during the COVID-19 pandemic. All children with Severe Acute respiratory illness admitted to the pediatric departments between January 2018 and December 2021 with negative COVID-19 PCR, were enrolled. The detection of respiratory pathogens was made by the Film Array Respiratory Panel. A total of 902 respiratory specimens were tested. A significantly lower positivity rate during the COVID-19 period was found (p = 0.006), especially in infants under 6 months (p = 0.008). There was a substantial absence of detection of Respiratory Syncytial Virus and Influenza A during the winter season following the outbreak of the pandemic (p < 0.05; p = 0.002 respectively). An inter-seasonal resurgence of Respiratory Syncytial Virus was noted. Human Rhinovirus was detected throughout the year, and more prevalent in winter during COVID-19 (p = 0.0002). These changes could be explained by the impact of the implementation of preventive measures related to the COVID-19 pandemic on the transmission of respiratory pathogens in children.