Wang Wei, Luo Xiaojuan, Ren Zhenmin, Fu Xiaoying, Chen Yunsheng, Wang WenJian, Bao Yanmin, Zheng Yuejie, Cao Ke, Chen Jiehua
Department of Respiratory, Shenzhen Children's Hospital, Shenzhen, 518038, China.
Department of Clinical Laboratory, Shenzhen Children's Hospital, Shenzhen, 518038, China.
BMC Infect Dis. 2025 Jan 22;25(1):103. doi: 10.1186/s12879-025-10463-y.
To investigate the impact of COVID-19 pandemic measures on hospitalizations and the alterations and persistence of the epidemiological patterns of 12 common respiratory pathogens in children during the COVID-19 pandemic and after the cessation of the "zero-COVID-19" policy in southern China.
Respiratory specimens were collected from hospitalized children with acute respiratory infections at Shenzhen Children's Hospital from January 2020 to June 2024. Twelve common respiratory pathogens were detected using multiplex PCR. Data on demographic characteristics, pathogen detection rates, epidemiological patterns, co-infections, and ICU admission rates were compared between the 'during COVID-19' period (Phase 1: January 2020 to December 2022) and the 'post COVID-19' period (Phase 2: January 2023 to June 2024).
In Phase 2, there was a significant increase in average annual cases, with a higher median age of affected children, higher pathogen detection rates, and increased co-infection rates compared to Phase 1. The epidemiological patterns of most pathogens were altered by the COVID-19 pandemic. Human Parainfluenza Virus, Human Metapneumovirus, Human Bocavirus (HBOV), and Human Coronavirus remained active during Phase 1, while Mycoplasma pneumoniae (Mp) and Adenovirus (ADV) were low, and Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) lacked a seasonal peak in 2022. In Phase 2, Mp, ADV, and RSV experienced outbreaks, with Mp's high prevalence continuing into 2024. RSV showed out-of-season epidemics for two consecutive years. Influenza A (H1N1), Influenza A (H3N2), and InfB lost their seasonal patterns during Phase 1 but reemerged and regained their seasonal characteristics in 2023-2024. ICU admission rates did not significantly differ between the two phases, except for HBOV, which had higher rates in Phase 2.
The epidemiological patterns of various respiratory pathogens were affected by the COVID-19 pandemic to varying degrees. Pathogens suppressed during the pandemic experienced outbreaks or out-of-season epidemics after the lifting of non-pharmaceutical interventions, with Mp and RSV continuing into the second year and HBOV associated ICU admission rates increasing in the post-pandemic era. Continuous monitoring of these patterns is essential to understand the duration of these effects and to inform effective response strategies.
探讨新冠疫情防控措施对住院情况的影响，以及新冠疫情期间和中国南方“动态清零”政策结束后，12种常见儿童呼吸道病原体流行病学模式的变化与持续情况。
收集2020年1月至2024年6月在深圳儿童医院住院的急性呼吸道感染儿童的呼吸道标本。采用多重PCR检测12种常见呼吸道病原体。比较“新冠疫情期间”（第1阶段：2020年1月至2022年12月）和“新冠疫情后”（第2阶段：2023年1月至2024年6月）的人口统计学特征、病原体检出率、流行病学模式、合并感染情况及重症监护病房（ICU）入住率数据。
在第2阶段，与第1阶段相比，年均病例数显著增加，受影响儿童的年龄中位数更高，病原体检出率更高，合并感染率增加。大多数病原体的流行病学模式受到新冠疫情的影响。人副流感病毒、人偏肺病毒、人博卡病毒（HBOV）和人冠状病毒在第1阶段仍较为活跃，而肺炎支原体（Mp）和腺病毒（ADV）检出率较低，呼吸道合胞病毒（RSV）在2022年缺乏季节性高峰。在第2阶段，Mp、ADV和RSV出现暴发，Mp的高流行率持续到2024年。RSV连续两年出现非季节性流行。甲型流感（H1N1）、甲型流感（H3N2）和乙型流感（InfB）在第1阶段失去季节性模式，但在2023 - 2024年重新出现并恢复季节性特征。除HBOV在第2阶段入住ICU率较高外，两个阶段的ICU入住率无显著差异。
新冠疫情对各种呼吸道病原体的流行病学模式产生了不同程度的影响。疫情期间受到抑制的病原体在非药物干预措施解除后出现暴发或非季节性流行，Mp和RSV持续到第二年，且HBOV相关的ICU入住率在疫情后时代有所增加。持续监测这些模式对于了解这些影响的持续时间和制定有效的应对策略至关重要。
