Underestimation of influenza viral infection in childhood asthma exacerbations.

Bocavirus was found in 11.6% of hospitalized children and 13% of ambulatory patients with exacerbations of asthma, and respiratory syncytial virus was found in 13.5% and 17.7%, respectively. In addition, influenza A virus was detected in 2.6% of hospitalized children and 14.1% (P<.001) of ambulatory-treated patients. Thus, the influenza burden in asthma may be underestimated.

Human bocavirus infection in hospitalized children during winter.

Human bocavirus (HBoV) has recently been described as a common agent of acute upper and lower respiratory tract infections in children. We screened by polymerase chain reaction for HBoV nucleic acid nasopharyngeal aspirates from hospitalized children with negative culture and immunofluorescence assay for respiratory syncytial virus, influenza viruses, adenovirus, and parainfluenza viruses. HBoV was detected in 32 children (5.5%) and was the second virus identified in nasopharyngeal aspirates after respiratory syncytial virus. Most of the children had severe disease.

Severity of acute gastroenteritis in infants infected by G1 or G9 rotaviruses.

BACKGROUND: Group A rotaviruses are the main viral causative agent of acute diarrhea, and cause considerable morbidity in children. G9 rotaviruses have recently emerged all over the world and are thought to give more severe symptoms because of a lack of previous exposure and the absence of maternal antibodies in patients. OBJECTIVES: To determine the clinical severity of G9 infections compared to G1 infections in hospitalized children. STUDY DESIGN: The prospective study was conducted from 2004 to 2007 in French children under 5 years old hospitalized for acute gastroenteritis. The rotaviruses were detected in stools by ELISA tests and genotyped by RT-PCR on the basis of their outer capsid proteins. The duration of hospitalization, the Vesikari clinical score, and the requirement for intravenous rehydration were compared. RESULTS: The stools from 370 children were analyzed and 162 stools infected by G1 (n=76) or G9 (n=86) rotaviruses were analyzed. Age and gender distribution were similar in the two groups as was the mean duration of hospitalization (2.7 days). The Vesikari scores were 12.96 and 12.83 in G1P[8] and G9P[8] groups (p=0.417), respectively, in which 55.3 and 53.5% of the children, respectively, were rehydrated with an intravenous line. CONCLUSIONS: No difference in severity was found between G1 and G9 rotavirus infections. Rigorous surveillance to monitor changes in the ecology of rotavirus infections is necessary, as emerging strains are more likely to cause severe gastroenteritis and not respond to current rotavirus vaccines.