1. Respiratory syncytial virus and metapneumovirus in children over two seasons with a high incidence of respiratory infections in Brazil
- Author
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Robert L. Serafino, C. Anthony Hart, Ricardo Queiroz Gurgel, Winifred Dove, and Luis E. Cuevas
- Subjects
Male ,Genotype ,Paramyxoviridae ,viruses ,Population ,Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infections ,Pneumovirinae ,Human metapneumovirus ,Humans ,Medicine ,Metapneumovirus ,education ,education.field_of_study ,Paramyxoviridae Infections ,biology ,business.industry ,Infant, Newborn ,Infant ,virus diseases ,Pneumovirus ,medicine.disease ,biology.organism_classification ,Virology ,Respiratory Syncytial Viruses ,respiratory tract diseases ,Pneumonia ,Cross-Sectional Studies ,Bronchiolitis ,Child, Preschool ,Pediatrics, Perinatology and Child Health ,Female ,Seasons ,business ,Brazil - Abstract
Acute respiratory infections (ARI) are one of the most important causes of death in children. Human metapneumovirus (HMPV), a virus first described in 2001, has now been detected in almost all continents. HMPV causes bronchiolitis and pneumonia with a clinical spectrum similar to respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). We describe the incidence of HMPV and RSV during two consecutive seasons with a high incidence of ARI in Aracaju, Brazil. HMPV was responsible for 24% of cases of bronchiolitis in the 1st season (April-May 2002) but was not found in the 2nd year (April-May 2003). RSV was recovered from 61 (55%) children with ARI in 2002 and from 72 (68%) in 2003. Children with RSV bronchiolitis in 2002 had more hypoxia but less wheezing than in 2003. The incidence of HMPV and RSV genotypes causing bronchiolitis varied between the years. Long-term prospective studies are required to better describe the epidemiology of these viruses in children.
- Published
- 2004
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