Hospitalizations related to respiratory viral infections during the 2017/18 season in the Valencia Region of Spain

Objectives To describe the impact and severity of hospitalizations related to respiratory viral infections using data from weeks 2017-37 to 2018-19 in the Valencia Region of Spain. Methods All consenting admitted patients were included in the study if they were non-institutionalized, residents in any of the participating hospitals' catchment areas, not discharged from a previous hospital admission within 30 days, had an influenza-like illness (ILI, only for patients ≥5 years old) and were hospitalized within 7 days of the onset of symptoms. Demographic and clinical information was collected by interviewing and/or from clinical records. Swabs were tested by real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) for influenza, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), metapneumovirus, parainfluenza, rhinovirus/enterovirus, adenovirus, coronavirus and bocavirus. Hospitalization incidence rates were calculated by virus and age. Severity was explored through Intensive Care Unit (ICU) admission, death in hospital, mechanical ventilation, extracorporeal membrane oxygenation and the length of hospitalization. Results The hospitalization incidence rates related to respiratory viral infections were 1062.89, 31.38, 36.12 and 434.64 per 100,000 in patients <5, 5 to <18, 18 to <65 and ≥65 years old (y.o.), respectively. The incidence rates were especially high in children <1 y.o. and in adults ≥85 y.o.: 3311.94 and 1044.77 per 100,000, respectively. The highest rates were detected for influenza, rhinovirus/enterovirus and RSV: 63.11, 40.20 and 25.81 per 100,000, respectively. Among infected patients, 2% were admitted to the ICU, 4% needed mechanical ventilation and 4% died in hospital. No differences in severity were detected among viruses. The median length of hospitalization among infected patients was 5 days (Interquartile Range, IQR: 3-8 days). Conclusions Respiratory viral infections affected mainly young children and elderly people. Influenza, rhinovirus/enterovirus and RSV were the most commonly detected infections. No differences in severity were detected between the assessed viruses.Medicin

Effectiveness of influenza vaccination programme in preventing hospital admissions, Valencia, 2014/15 early results

Preliminary results for the 2014/15 season indicate low to null effect of vaccination against influenza A(H3N2)-related disease. As of week 5 2015, there have been 1,136 hospital admissions, 210 were due to influenza and 98% of subtype A strains were H3. Adjusted influenza vaccine effectiveness was 33% (range: 6–53%) overall and 40% (range: 13% to 59%) in those 65 years and older. Vaccination reduced by 44% (28–68%) the probability of admission with influenza.The study was funded by a contract between FISABIO and Sanofi-Pasteur

Recommendations for the introduction of metagenomic high-throughput sequencing in clinical virology, part I: Wet lab procedure

Metagenomic high-throughput sequencing (mHTS) is a hypothesis-free, universal pathogen detection technique for determination of the DNA/RNA sequences in a variety of sample types and infectious syndromes. mHTS is still in its early stages of translating into clinical application. To support the development, implementation and standardization of mHTS procedures for virus diagnostics, the European Society for Clinical Virology (ESCV) Network on Next-Generation Sequencing (ENNGS) has been established. The aim of ENNGS is to bring together professionals involved in mHTS for viral diagnostics to share methodologies and experiences, and to develop application recommendations. This manuscript aims to provide practical recommendations for the wet lab procedures necessary for i

Epidemiology Of Hospital Admissions With Influenza During The 2013/2014 Northern Hemisphere Influenza Season: Results From The Global Influenza Hospital Surveillance Network

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A European multi-centre evaluation of detection and typing methods for human enteroviruses and parechoviruses using RNA transcripts

Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) detection has become the gold standard for diagnosis and typing of enterovirus (EV) and human parechovirus (HPeV) infections. Its effectiveness depends critically on using the appropriate sample types and high assay sensitivity as viral loads in cerebrospinal fluid samples from meningitis and sepsis clinical presentation can be extremely low. This study evaluated the sensitivity and specificity of currently used commercial and in‐house diagnostic and typing assays. Accurately quantified RNA transcript controls were distributed to 27 diagnostic and 12 reference laboratories in 17 European countries for blinded testing. Transcripts represented the four human EV species (EV‐A71, echovirus 30, coxsackie A virus 21, and EV‐D68), HPeV3, and specificity controls. Reported results from 48 in‐house and 15 commercial assays showed 98% detection frequencies of high copy (1000 RNA copies/5 µL) transcripts. In‐house assays showed significantly greater detection frequencies of the low copy (10 copies/5 µL) EV and HPeV transcripts (81% and 86%, respectively) compared with commercial assays (56%, 50%; P = 7 × 10−5). EV‐specific PCRs showed low cross‐reactivity with human rhinovirus C (3 of 42 tests) and infrequent positivity in the negative control (2 of 63 tests). Most or all high copy EV and HPeV controls were successfully typed (88%, 100%) by reference laboratories, but showed reduced effectiveness for low copy controls (41%, 67%). Stabilized RNA transcripts provide an effective, logistically simple and inexpensive reagent for evaluation of diagnostic assay performance. The study provides reassurance of the performance of the many in‐house assay formats used across Europe. However, it identified often substantially reduced sensitivities of commercial assays often used as point‐of‐care tests