9 research outputs found
Prevalence and clinical aspects of respiratory syncytial virus A and B groups in children seen at Hospital de Clínicas of Uberlândia, MG, Brazil
Prevalence and clinical aspects of respiratory syncytial virus A and B groups in children seen at Hospital de Clínicas of Uberlândia, MG, Brazil
Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is well recognized as the most
important pathogen causing acute respiratory disease in infants and
young children, mainly in the form of bronchiolitis and pneumonia. Two
major antigenic groups, A and B, have been identified; however, there
is disagreement about the severity of the diseases caused by these two
types. This study investigated a possible association between RSV
groups and severity of disease. Reverse transcription-polymerase chain
reaction was used to characterize 128 RSV nasopharyngeal specimens from
children less than five years old experiencing acute respiratory
disease. A total of 82 of 128 samples (64.1%) could be typed, and, of
these, 78% were group A, and 22% were group B. Severity was measured by
clinical evaluation associated with demographic factors: for RSV
A-infected patients, 53.1% were hospitalized, whereas for RSV B
patients, 27.8% were hospitalized (p = 0.07). Around 35.0% of the
patients presented risk factors for severity (e.g., prematurity). For
those without risk factors, the hospitalization occurred in 47.6% of
patients infected with RSV A and in 18.2% infected with RSV B. There
was a trend for RSV B infections to be milder than those of RSV A. Even
though RSV A-infected patients, including cases without underlying
condition and prematurity, were more likely to require hospitalization
than those infected by RSV B, the disease severity could not to be
attributed to the RSV groups
The aetiology of community associated pneumonia in children in Nanjing, China and aetiological patterns associated with age and season
Acute respiratory infections in hospitalized children in Vientiane, Lao PDR – the importance of Respiratory Syncytial Virus
Age-specific Prevalence of Antibodies to Hepatitis A in Children and Adolescents from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 1978 and 1995: Relationship of Prevalence to Environmental Factors
The age-specific prevalence of antibodies to hepatitis A virus (anti-HAV) was determined in two different population groups with low socio-economic status from Rio de Janeiro city, Brazil, whose serum samples were collected 17 years apart (Population 1, 1978; Population 2, 1995). In Population 2, analysis of the anti-HAV prevalence was also carried out with respect to environmental factors. Population 1 was composed of 520 stored sera collected from the umbilical cord of term neonates and children aged 1 month to 6 years. In population 2, 720 serum samples were collected from children and adolescents with ages ranging from 1 to 23 years. The overall prevalence rate of anti-HAV in Population 1 and Population 2 was 65.6% and 32.1%, respectively. In Population 1, the anti-HAV prevalence reached 88% at the age of 3, while in Population 2, it increased from 4.5% in children under the age of 3 to 66% in the group of adolescents over the age of 14. The low exposure to HAV infection in younger children from Population 2 could be a result of improved environmental hygiene and sanitation, as demonstrated by the presence of piped water, waste and sewage disposal systems in most houses from this population group. These findings indicate a possible change in the prevalence of hepatitis A in Rio de Janeir