From the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Department, La Paz University Hospital, Fundación IdiPaz, Madrid, Spain.
TEDDY Network (European Network of Excellence for Pediatric Clinical Research), Italy.
Pediatr Infect Dis J. 2020 Aug;39(8):653-657. doi: 10.1097/INF.0000000000002760.
Human coronaviruses (HCoVs) have been recognized as causative agents of respiratory tract infections.Our aim was to describe HCoV infections in hospitalized children in a prospective surveillance study for 14 years and compare them with other respiratory viruses.
As a part of an ongoing prospective study to identify the etiology of viral respiratory infections in Spain, we performed the analysis of HCoV infections in children hospitalized in a secondary hospital in Madrid, between October 2005 and June 2018. Clinical data of HCoV patients were compared with those infected by rhinovirus, respiratory syncytial virus and influenza.
The study population consisted of 5131 hospitalizations for respiratory causes in children. A total of 3901 cases (75.9%) had a positive viral identification and 205 cases (4.1%) were positive for HCoV. Only 41 cases (20%) of HCoV infection were detected as single infections. Episodes of recurrent wheezing were the most common diagnosis, and 112 children (54%) had hypoxia. Clinical data in HCoV cases were similar to those associated with rhinovirus; however, patients with HCoV were younger. Other viruses were associated with hypoxia more frequently than cases with HCoV; high fever was more common in influenza infections and bronchiolitis in respiratory syncytial virus group. Although a slight peak of circulation appears mostly in winter, HCoV has been detected throughout the year as well.
HCoV infections represent a small fraction of respiratory infections that require hospitalization in children and their characteristics do not differ greatly from other respiratory viral infections.
人类冠状病毒（HCoV）已被确认为呼吸道感染的病原体。我们的目的是在一项为期 14 年的前瞻性监测研究中描述住院儿童中的 HCoV 感染，并将其与其他呼吸道病毒进行比较。
作为一项正在进行的西班牙病毒呼吸道感染病因学研究的一部分，我们对马德里一家二级医院住院的儿童进行了 HCoV 感染分析，时间为 2005 年 10 月至 2018 年 6 月。我们将 HCoV 患者的临床数据与感染鼻病毒、呼吸道合胞病毒和流感病毒的患者进行了比较。
研究人群包括 5131 例因呼吸原因住院的儿童。共有 3901 例（75.9%）病毒检测阳性，205 例（4.1%）HCoV 阳性。仅 41 例（20%）HCoV 感染为单一感染。反复喘息发作是最常见的诊断，112 例儿童（54%）有缺氧。HCoV 病例的临床数据与鼻病毒相关病例相似，但 HCoV 患者年龄较小。与 HCoV 病例相比，其他病毒与缺氧的相关性更高；流感感染时高热更常见，呼吸道合胞病毒组中更常见细支气管炎。尽管循环的轻微高峰主要出现在冬季，但 HCoV 也全年都有检出。
HCoV 感染在需要住院治疗的儿童呼吸道感染中占比较小，其特征与其他呼吸道病毒感染并无显著差异。
