[Analysis of Epstein Barr virus infection in 761 hospitalized children]

To study the status of EB virus (EBV) infection and the spectrum of EBV infection-related diseases.A total of 761 plasma samples with suspected EBV infection were collected from 761 children (aged from 22 days to 14 years) admitted between August 2010 and July 2011. EBV-DNA of 761 plasma samples was detected by real-time PCR. The epidemiological characteristics and final clinical diagnosis were analyzed based on the clinical data of these EBV-positive hospitalized patients.A total of 109 cases with EBV infection were detected by real-time PCR, with a positive rate of 14.3%. There were significant differences in the positive rate of EBV-DNA among different age groups and between seasons (P0.05). The positive rate of EBV-DNA in the baby group (1 year old) was lowest (P0.05), and the positive rate of EBV-DNA in summer was higher than in winter (P0.05). The range of plasma EBV-DNA level in children with EBV-DNA positivity was 2.13 to 6.69 (median 3.72). Based on the final diagnosis of 62 EBV-positive hospitalized children, the most common disease was respiratory system infection (39%), such as acute bronchitis, acute upper respiratory infection and bronchopneumonia.The EBV-DNA positive rate is different among different age groups and between seasons. Respiratory system infection is a leading disease in hospitalized children who are EBV-DNA positive. Real-time PCR assay is useful for rapid and reliable clinical diagnosis of EBV in children.