The burden of Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) infection in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region across age groups: A systematic review

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is one of the most common viruses to infect children worldwide and is the leading cause of lower respiratory tract illness (LRI) in infants. This study aimed to conduct a systematic review by collecting and reviewing all the published knowledge about the epidemiology of RSV in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. Therefore, we systematically searched four databases; Embase, Medline, Scopus, and Cochrane databases from 2001 to 2019 to collect all the information related to the RSV prevalence, genotype distribution, and seasonality in children in MENA region. Our search strategy identified 598 studies, of which 83 met our inclusion criteria, which cover the past 19 years (2000–2019). Odds ratio (OR) and confidence interval (CI) were calculated to measure the association between RSV prevalence, gender, and age distribution. An overall prevalence of 24.4% (n = 17,106/69,981) of respiratory infections was recorded for RSV. The highest RSV prevalence was reported in Jordan (64%, during 2006–2007) and Israel (56%, 2005–2006). RSV A subgroup was more prevalent (62.9%; OR = 2.9, 95%CI = 2.64–3.13) than RSV B. RSV was most prevalent in children who were less than 12 months old (68.6%; OR = 4.7, 95%CI = 2.6–8.6) and was higher in males (59.6%; OR = 2.17, 95%CI = 1.2–3.8) than in female infants. Finally, the highest prevalence was recorded during winter seasons in all countries, except for Pakistan. RSV prevalence in the MENA region is comparable with the global one (24.4% vs. 22%). This first comprehensive report about RSV prevalence in the MENA region and our data should be important to guide vaccine introduction decisions and future evaluation.

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Prevalence of Latent Tuberculosis Infection in the Middle East and North Africa: A Systematic Review

Pulmonary Medicine ◽

10.1155/2021/6680651 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 2021 ◽

pp. 1-12

Author(s):

Mazin Barry

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Middle East ◽

North Africa ◽

Subgroup Analysis ◽

Latent Tuberculosis Infection ◽

Latent Tuberculosis ◽

Tuberculosis Infection ◽

World Health ◽

Published Data ◽

Mena Region

Objective. Data on the prevalence of latent tuberculosis infection (LTBI) in Middle Eastern and North African countries are scarce. We aimed to review all relevant published data in countries belonging to this region to determine the overall prevalence of LTBI in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region. Methods. In this systematic review PubMed and Google Scholar databases were searched for observational, prospective, retrospective, cross-sectional, and cohort studies providing prevalence data of LTBI in any MENA country. Studies fulfilling the search criteria were incorporated in the review. Overall prevalence of LTBI with 95% confidence intervals (CI) was calculated using the random-effects model; heterogeneity was assessed using I 2 statistics. Gender and age group-based subgroup analyses were performed to evaluate the basis of heterogeneity. Results. The total number of overall LTBI studies identified was 956, of which 31 studies from ten countries within the MENA region were included that represented 12,439 subjects. The overall prevalence was 41.78% (95% CI 31.18% to 52.78%, I 2 = 99.31 % ). By gender-based subgroup analysis, the prevalence of LTBI was 33.12% (95% CI 18.97% to 49.04%, I 2 = 99.25 % ) and 32.65% (95% CI 19.79% to 47%, I 2 = 98.89 % ) in males and females, respectively, while in the age-based subgroup analysis, the prevalence of LTBI was 0.44% (95% CI -0.05% to 0.9%), 3.37% (95% CI 2.23% to 4.74%, I 2 = 0 % ), and 43.81% (95% CI 33.09% to 54.82%, I 2 = 99.18 % ) for children, adolescents, and adults, respectively. Conclusion. This systematic review reveals a high prevalence of LTBI in the MENA region; enhanced LTBI surveillance and prompt infection prevention steps are urgently needed to prevent active tuberculosis, this would help achieve the World Health Organization End TB Strategy 2035, and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals 2030 target in the MENA region.

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The epidemiology of Norovirus in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region: a systematic review

Virology Journal ◽

10.1186/s12985-017-0877-3 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 14 (1) ◽

Cited By ~ 13

Author(s):

Khalil Kreidieh ◽

Rana Charide ◽

Ghassan Dbaibo ◽

Nada M. Melhem

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Middle East ◽

North Africa ◽

Mena Region

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Humoral immunity to respiratory syncytial virus in young and elderly adults

Epidemiology and Infection ◽

10.1017/s0950268809002593 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 137 (12) ◽

pp. 1684-1686 ◽

Cited By ~ 15

Author(s):

C. TERROSI ◽

G. Di GENOVA ◽

B. MARTORELLI ◽

M. VALENTINI ◽

M. G. CUSI

Keyword(s):

Respiratory Syncytial Virus ◽

Neutralizing Antibodies ◽

Serum Antibody ◽

Age Groups ◽

The Elderly ◽

Elderly Subjects ◽

Rsv Infection ◽

Syncytial Virus ◽

Relationship Of ◽

The Relationship

SUMMARYRespiratory syncytial virus (RSV) has been demonstrated to cause substantial disease in elderly and immunocompromised subjects. The relationship of serum antibody to RSV infection and the risk of infection in elderly subjects is controversial, thus we evaluated the presence of neutralizing antibodies to RSV in healthy people of different age groups and the correlation with viral protection. Baseline blood samples from 197 subjects aged 20–80 years were analysed for the presence of anti-RSV antibodies either by indirect immunofluorescence and microneutralization test. The percentage of people who had neutralizing antibodies to RSV was significantly higher (P=0·001) in the youngest group (92·51%) compared to the frail group (36·21%). The RSV antibody level tends to wane in some older people; this factor could determine proneness to RSV re-infections in the elderly who are at a greater risk of developing severe respiratory disease.

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A systematic review of childhood obesity in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region: Health impact and management

Advances in Pediatric Research ◽

10.12715/apr.2017.4.6 ◽

2017 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Childhood Obesity ◽

Middle East ◽

North Africa ◽

Health Impact ◽

Mena Region

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Prevalence and Risk Factors of Respiratory Syncytial Virus in Children under 5 Years of Age in the WHO European Region: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Journal of Personalized Medicine ◽

10.3390/jpm11050416 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (5) ◽

pp. 416

Author(s):

Nora Suleiman-Martos ◽

Alberto Caballero-Vázquez ◽

Jose Luis Gómez-Urquiza ◽

Luis Albendín-García ◽

Jose Luis Romero-Béjar ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Risk Factors ◽

Systematic Review ◽

Respiratory Syncytial Virus ◽

Meta Analysis ◽

World Health ◽

European Region ◽

Healthy Children ◽

Rsv Infection ◽

Syncytial Virus ◽

Children Under 5

A respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is the major cause of respiratory tract infection in children under 5 years. However, RSV infection in the European Region of the World Health Organization has not been systematically reviewed. The aim was to determine the prevalence and factors associated with RSV in children under 5 years of age in European regions. A systematic review and meta-analysis was performed. CINAHL, Medline, LILACS, ProQuest, SciELO, and Scopus databases were consulted for studies published in the last 5 years, following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-analysis guidelines. The search equation was “respiratory syncytial virus AND (newborn OR infant OR child) AND (prevalence OR risk factors)”. Studies reporting the prevalence of RSV were eligible for inclusion in the meta-analysis. A total of 20 articles were included. The meta-analytic prevalence estimation of RSV, with a sample of n = 16,115 children, was 46% (95% CI 34–59%). The main risk factors were age, male gender, winter season, and environmental factors such as cold temperatures, higher relative humidity, high concentrations of benzene, exposure to tobacco, and living in urban areas. Robust age-specific estimates of RSV infection in healthy children should be promoted in order to determine the optimal age for immunization. In addition, it is necessary to analyse in greater depth the potentially predictive factors of RSV infection, to be included in prevention strategies.

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The Immunogenicity and Safety of Rsv Vaccines in Development: A Systematic Review

10.20944/preprints202005.0477.v1 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Jing Shan

Keyword(s):

Systematic Review ◽

Clinical Trials ◽

Respiratory Syncytial Virus ◽

Pregnant Women ◽

Vaccine Candidate ◽

Controlled Vocabulary ◽

Acute Lower Respiratory Infection ◽

Vaccine Candidates ◽

Rsv Infection ◽

Syncytial Virus

Background: Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a leading cause of acute lower respiratory infection globally. There are vaccines in pipeline to prevent it but a systematic review on immunogenicity and safety of vaccine is lacking. Methods: This systematic review of RSV vaccine clinical trials was undertaken using 4 databases. Searches were conducted using both controlled vocabulary terms such as ‘Respiratory Syncytial Virus, Human’, ‘Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infections’, ‘Respiratory Syncytial Virus Vaccines’, ‘Immunization’, ‘Immunization Programs’ and ‘Vaccines’ and corresponding text word terms. The searches for published papers were limited to clinical trials published from January 2000 to August 6th, 2018. RSV infection case was defined as RSV associated medically attended acute respiratory illness (MAARI) or RSV infection by serologically-confirmed test (Western Blot) during the RSV surveillance period. We calculated the relative risk of each vaccine trial with RSV infection case. Results: Of 4395 publications, 24 were included and data were extracted covering 4 major types of RSV vaccine candidates, these being live-attenuated/chimeric (n=9), recombinant-vector (n=10), subunit (n=1) and nanoparticle vaccines (n=4). For RSV infection cases, 7 trials were involved and none of them showed a vaccine-related increased MAARI during RSV surveillance season. Conclusion: LID ∆M2-2, MEDI M2-2, and RSVcps2 (live-attenuated) were considered the most promising vaccine candidates in infant and children. In the elderly, a nanoparticle F vaccine candidate was considered as a potential effective vaccine. Although no promising vaccine was identified from pregnant-women test, RSV F-024 subunit vaccine candidate and an RSV F nanoparticle vaccine showed encouraging results in healthy non-pregnant women.

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Performance of surveillance case definitions for respiratory syncytial virus infections through the sentinel influenza surveillance system, Portugal, 2010 to 2018

Eurosurveillance ◽

10.2807/1560-7917.es.2019.24.45.1900140 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 24 (45) ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Emma Sáez-López ◽

Pedro Pechirra ◽

Inês Costa ◽

Paula Cristóvão ◽

Patrícia Conde ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Respiratory Syncytial Virus ◽

Characteristic Curve ◽

Age Groups ◽

Case Definition ◽

Influenza Surveillance ◽

Surveillance Systems ◽

The European Union ◽

Case Definitions ◽

Rsv Infection ◽

Syncytial Virus

Background Well-established influenza surveillance systems (ISS) can be used for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) surveillance. In Portugal, RSV cases are detected through the ISS using the European Union (EU) influenza-like illness (ILI) case definition. Aim To investigate clinical predictors for RSV infection and how three case definitions (EU ILI, a modified EU acute respiratory infection, and one respiratory symptom) performed in detecting RSV infections in Portugal. Methods This observational retrospective study used epidemiological and laboratory surveillance data (October 2010–May 2018). Associations between clinical characteristics and RSV detection were analysed using logistic regression. Accuracy of case definitions was assessed through sensitivity, specificity, and area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC). A 0.05 significance level was accepted. Results The study involved 6,523 persons, including 190 (2.9%) RSV cases. Among 183 cases with age information, RSV infection was significantly more frequent among individuals < 5 years (n = 23; 12.6%) and ≥ 65 years (n = 45; 24.6%) compared with other age groups (p < 0.0001). Cough (odds ratio (OR): 2.4; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.2–6.5) was the best RSV-infection predictor considering all age groups, while shortness of breath was particularly associated with RSV-positivity among ≤ 14 year olds (OR: 6.7; 95% CI: 2.6–17.4 for 0–4 year olds and OR: 6.7; 95% CI: 1.5–28.8 for 5–14 year olds). Systemic symptoms were significantly associated with RSV-negative and influenza-positive cases. None of the case definitions were suitable to detect RSV infections (AUC = 0.51). Conclusion To avoid underestimating the RSV disease burden, RSV surveillance within the Portuguese sentinel ISS would require a more sensitive case definition than ILI and, even a different case definition according to age.

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