Department of Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.
Department of Emergency Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.
Trop Med Int Health. 2022 Jul;27(7):647-654. doi: 10.1111/tmi.13781. Epub 2022 Jun 8.
With the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic, restrictions were implemented globally to control the virus. Data on respiratory pathogens in sub-Saharan Africa during the COVID-19 pandemic are scarce. This analysis was conducted to evaluate patterns of respiratory pathogens in rural Zambia before and during the first year of the pandemic.
Surveillance was established in December 2018 at Macha Hospital in southern Zambia. Patients with respiratory symptoms in the outpatient and inpatient clinics were recruited. Nasopharyngeal samples were collected and tested for respiratory pathogens. The prevalence of respiratory symptoms and pathogens was evaluated and compared in the first (December 10, 2018-December 9, 2019) and second (December 10, 2019-November 30, 2020) years of surveillance.
Outpatient visits and admissions for respiratory illness significantly decreased from the first to second year, especially among children. SARS-CoV-2 was not detected from any participants in Year 2. Among outpatients and inpatients with respiratory symptoms, the prevalence of respiratory syncytial virus and influenza viruses decreased from the first to second year. In contrast, the prevalence of rhinovirus/enterovirus, metapneumovirus and parainfluenza virus increased.
The epidemiology of respiratory viruses in rural Zambia changed during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, suggesting that public health interventions may have had an impact on the introduction and circulation of respiratory pathogens in this area.
随着 COVID-19 大流行的出现，全球实施了限制措施以控制病毒。关于 COVID-19 大流行期间撒哈拉以南非洲地区呼吸道病原体的数据很少。本分析旨在评估 COVID-19 大流行前一年和第一年期间赞比亚农村地区呼吸道病原体的模式。
2018 年 12 月在赞比亚南部马查医院建立了监测。招募在门诊和住院诊所出现呼吸道症状的患者。采集鼻咽样本并检测呼吸道病原体。评估并比较了第一年（2018 年 12 月 10 日-2019 年 12 月 9 日）和第二年（2019 年 12 月 10 日-2020 年 11 月 30 日）监测期间的呼吸道症状和病原体的流行率。
从第一年到第二年，门诊就诊和呼吸道疾病住院人数明显减少，尤其是儿童。在第二年的任何参与者中均未检测到 SARS-CoV-2。在有呼吸道症状的门诊患者和住院患者中，呼吸道合胞病毒和流感病毒的流行率从第一年降至第二年。相比之下，鼻病毒/肠道病毒、副流感病毒和偏肺病毒的流行率增加。
COVID-19 大流行的第一年，赞比亚农村地区呼吸道病毒的流行病学发生了变化，表明公共卫生干预措施可能对该地区呼吸道病原体的引入和传播产生了影响。
