A STUDY ON VIRAL ETIOLOGIES OF LOWER RESPIRATORY INFECTIONS IN CHILDREN HOSPITALIZED IN HUE CENTRAL HOSPITAL FROM MARCH-2010 TO APRIL 2011
Introduction: Lower respiratory infections caused by respiratory viruses have played an important role in morbility and mortality in young children. Identification of viral etiologies has not been done in poor countries due to the lack of laboratory facilities for viral diagnosis. This study was to determine viral etiologies in children hospitalized with lower respiratory infections. Patients and methods: Nasal pharyngeal swabs or throat swabs were collected from 216 children hospitalized clinically with lower respiratory infections and processed for viral identification by RT-PCR and PCR. Results: Viral respiratory infections were detected in 91 children (42%) with 107 respiratory viruses, majority of infected children were younger than 5 years of age. among them 76 children (84%) have single infection and 15 children (16%) have co-infections of 2 or 3 viruses. The most common respiratory virus was influenza A virus with 41 cases (45%), followed by RSV with 38 cases (42%), adenovirus in 11 cases (12%), influenza B virus in 7 (8%) and parainfluenza virus type 1 and 3 in 5 cases (5%) each. RSV infections were found in several months, whereas, influenza virus infections were found in high numbers in rainy and cold months from October of 2010 to February of following year, influenza A(H1N1)pdm09 was the predominant subtype of influenza A virus. Conclusion: Respiratory viruses were found with the high rate in children hospitalized with lower respiratory infections; the common viruses detected were influenza A(H1N1) pdm09 virus and RSV. Key words: influenza, RSV, lower respiratory infections