Clinical manifestations of human coronavirus NL63 infection in children in Taiwan
Journal
European Journal of Pediatrics
Journal Volume
167
Journal Issue
1
Pages
75-80
Date Issued
2008
Author(s)
Wu P.-S.
Berkhout B.
Van Der Hoek L.
Lee C.-Y.
Huang F.-Y.
Abstract
Human coronavirus NL63 (HCoV-NL63) is a global respiratory tract pathogen; however, the epidemiology of this virus in subtropical area is not well known. To evaluate the epidemics and disease spectrum of HCoV-NL63 infection in children in Taiwan, we prospectively screened children admitted to the hospital with respiratory tract infection from May 2004 to April 2005. Every enrolled child had a nasopharyngeal aspirate (NPA) sample taken. Quantitative RT-PCR was used to detect 1b gene of HCoV-NL63. A total of 539 NPAs were collected. Seven (1.3%) were positive for HCoV-NL63. All cases were boys younger than 3 years of age and most cases occurred in autumn. Co-infection with other pathogens was observed in three cases. The most common symptoms/signs of HCoV-NL63 infection were cough, fever, and inspiratory stridor. HCoV-NL63 was the most common pathogen (14.7%) in children with croup and was the cause of three cases of croup in October. The odds ratio of croup in children infected with HCoV-NL63 was 43.4 (95% CI 8.1?233.1). In conclusion, HCoV-NL63 is an important respiratory tract pathogen as the main cause in children admitted to the hospital in Taiwan. ? 2007 Springer-Verlag.
SDGs
Other Subjects
article; child hospitalization; clinical evaluation; clinical feature; cluster analysis; controlled study; coughing; croup; fever; human; human coronavirus nl63; laboratory test; major clinical study; male; pathogenesis; preschool child; prevalence; priority journal; Respiratory syncytial pneumovirus; respiratory tract infection; reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction; risk; stridor; Taiwan; thorax radiography; virus infection; Child, Preschool; Coronavirus; Coronavirus Infections; Croup; Humans; Incidence; Infant; Male; Prospective Studies; Respiratory Tract Infections; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; Seasons; Taiwan; Viral Load
Type
journal article