| Title | Respiratory Pathogens in Infants Diagnosed with Acute Lower Respiratory Tract Infection in a Tertiary Care Hospital of Western India Using Multiplex Real Time PCR. | ||
| Author | Sonawane, Anuja A; Shastri, Jayanthi; Bavdekar, Sandeep B | ||
| Journal | Indian J Pediatr | Publication Year/Month | 2019-May |
| PMID | 30637585 | PMCID | PMC7091426 |
| Affiliation + expend | 1.Department of Microbiology, T.N. Medical College & B.Y.L. Nair Hospital, Mumbai, Maharashtra, 400008, India. dr.anujasonawane@gmail.com. | ||
OBJECTIVE: To determine the frequency of respiratory pathogens in infants diagnosed with acute lower respiratory tract infections. METHODS: A prospective cross-sectional observational study was conducted in infants hospitalized with a diagnosis of acute lower respiratory tract infection (ALRTI), in a tertiary care hospital in a metropolitan city of Western India. Nasopharyngeal swabs were analyzed by multiplex real time polymerase chain reaction, for 18 viruses and 3 bacteria (H. influenzae type b, C. pneumoniae and M. pneumoniae). The entire data was entered in Microsoft excel sheet and frequencies were determined. RESULTS: One hundred eligible infants were enrolled. Pathogens were detected in 82 samples, which included Respiratory syncytial viruses (RSV) A / B (35.4%), Human rhinovirus (25.6%), Adenovirus (22%), Human Parainfluenza viruses (11%), Human bocavirus (9.8), Human metapneumovirus A / B (8.5%), Influenza A (H1N1) pdm 09 (6.1%), Parechovirus (3.7%), Human coronaviruses (3.66%), Haemophilus influenzae type b (6.1%), Chlamydia pneumoniae (2.4%) and Mycoplasma pneumoniae (2.4%). Influenza A (other than H1N1), Influenza B, Human Coronavirus 229E and Enterovirus were not detected. The rate of coinfection was 34% and rhinovirus was the most common of the multiple pathogens. CONCLUSIONS: Spectrum of viral etiologies of ALRTI is highlighted. Etiological diagnosis of ALRTI would enable specific antiviral therapy, restrict antibiotic use and help in knowing burden of disease.