Etiology and clinical epidemiological characteristics of bronchiolitis / 中国实用儿科杂志

ABSTRACT

Bronchiolitis is an acute lower respiratory tract infection in early childhood. Respiratory syncytial virus(RSV)is the most common etiology of bronchiolitis. Infections with Mycoplasma pneumoniae,Chlamydia pneumonia and Chlamydia trachomatis can also cause bronchiolitis. Bronchiolitis mainly occurs in infants under 2 years of age,with a peak age of 2 to 6 months. Bronchiolitis is the most common reason for hospitalization in infants,and infants under 6 months of age have the highest hospitalization rate. Since bronchiolitis is mainly caused by RSV infection,its seasonal characteristics are similar to those of local RSV infection. Bronchiolitis is a disease with a high incidence but a low mortality rate. Being less than 3 months,prematurity,congenital heart disease and so on are risk factors of severe bronchiolitis.