Cai Xulong, Xu Qiaolan, Zhou Chenrong, Zhou Li, Yong Qijun, Mu Qing, Cheng Yan, Wang Jiena, Xie Jingjing
Department of Pediatrics, Yancheng Third People's Hospital, Yancheng, Jiangsu, China.
PeerJ. 2020 Aug 25;8:e9814. doi: 10.7717/peerj.9814. eCollection 2020.
Lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI) is one of the leading cause of death in children under 5 years old around the world between 1980 and 2016. Distinguishing between viral and bacterial infection is challenging when children suffered from LRTI in the absence of pathogen detection. The aim of our study is to analyze the difference of serum β2-microglobulin (β2-MG) between viral LRTI and bacterial LRTI in children.
This retrospective study included children with LRTI caused by a single pathogen from Yancheng Third People's Hospital, Yancheng, China, between January 1, 2016 and December 31, 2019. Participants were divided into the younger group (1 year old ≤ age < 3 years old) and the older group (3 years old ≤ age < 5 years old) for subgroup analysis.
A total of 475 children with LRTI caused by common respiratory pathogens were identified. In the younger group as well as the older group, the serum level of β2-MG in respiratory syncytial virus, influenza A virus and influenza B virus groups were significantly increased compared to that in the group. Compared with infection group, the serum β2-MG level of respiratory syncytial virus, influenza A virus and influenza B virus groups were significantly higher in children between 1 and 3 years old.
The serum β2-MG may distinguish viral infection from bacterial infection in children with LRTI.
下呼吸道感染（LRTI）是1980年至2016年间全球5岁以下儿童的主要死因之一。当儿童在未进行病原体检测的情况下患LRTI时，区分病毒感染和细菌感染具有挑战性。我们研究的目的是分析儿童病毒性LRTI和细菌性LRTI之间血清β2-微球蛋白（β2-MG）的差异。
这项回顾性研究纳入了2016年1月1日至2019年12月31日期间来自中国盐城第三人民医院的由单一病原体引起的LRTI儿童。参与者被分为较小组（1岁≤年龄<3岁）和较大组（3岁≤年龄<5岁）进行亚组分析。
共确定了475例由常见呼吸道病原体引起的LRTI儿童。在较小组和较大组中，呼吸道合胞病毒、甲型流感病毒和乙型流感病毒组的血清β2-MG水平与[此处原文缺失对照组相关信息]组相比均显著升高。与[此处原文缺失对照组相关信息]感染组相比，1至3岁儿童中呼吸道合胞病毒、甲型流感病毒和乙型流感病毒组的血清β2-MG水平显著更高。
血清β2-MG可能有助于区分LRTI儿童的病毒感染和细菌感染。
