Mollel Joshua Stephen, Mziray Shabani Ramadhani, Ndaro Arnold, Kituma Elimsaada, Kamwamwa Innocent, Mapunda Lawrence, Semvua Hadija, Mpagama Stellah George, Chilongola Jaffu Othniel
School of Public Health, KCMC University, Moshi, Tanzania.
Department of Medical Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, KCMC University, Moshi, Tanzania.
IJID Reg. 2025 Jun 13;16:100686. doi: 10.1016/j.ijregi.2025.100686. eCollection 2025 Sep.
Acute respiratory tract infections (ARTIs) may be misdiagnosed due to bottlenecks in conventional diagnostics. The primary objective was to identify viral pathogens using reverse transcription real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR).
Cross-sectional study was conducted between 2022 and 2024 at Tanzanian referral hospitals. Viral RNA was extracted from oral-nasopharyngeal swabs and amplified using multiplex and singleplex RT-PCR. Cycle threshold values ≤40 and ≤35 were considered positive for multiplex and singleplex RT-PCR, respectively.
We recruited 183 participants with median age of 52 years (interquartile range, 32-69). Of these, 119 (65%) were females. The majority (167 of 183, 91.3%) had no COVID-19 vaccination. Over one-third (67 of 183, 36.61%) were PCR-positive for viral pathogens. Seven viral pathogens were identified, and the more prevalent were influenza A virus (Flu A) (n = 27), SARS-CoV-2 (n = 10), and respiratory syncytial virus (n = 7). The most common co-infecting viruses were FluA + respiratory syncytial virus (n = 6), Flu A + influenza B virus + SARS-CoV-2 (n = 4), and SARS-CoV-2 + Flu A (n = 3). Elderly people (aged >65 years) were commonly infected with Flu A (n = 9) and SARS-CoV-2 (n = 5).
Viral pathogens are common in people with ARTIs. This study emphasizes consideration of RT-PCR in addition to conventional diagnostic approaches for identifying viral pathogens in patients with ARTIs.
由于传统诊断方法存在瓶颈，急性呼吸道感染（ARTIs）可能会被误诊。主要目的是使用逆转录实时聚合酶链反应（RT-PCR）鉴定病毒病原体。
于2022年至2024年在坦桑尼亚的转诊医院进行横断面研究。从口咽拭子中提取病毒RNA，并使用多重和单重RT-PCR进行扩增。多重和单重RT-PCR的循环阈值分别≤40和≤35被视为阳性。
我们招募了183名参与者，中位年龄为52岁（四分位间距为32 - 69岁）。其中，119名（65%）为女性。大多数（183名中的167名，91.3%）未接种新冠疫苗。超过三分之一（183名中的67名，36.61%）的病毒病原体PCR检测呈阳性。鉴定出七种病毒病原体，较常见的是甲型流感病毒（Flu A）（n = 27）、严重急性呼吸综合征冠状病毒2（SARS-CoV-2）（n = 10）和呼吸道合胞病毒（n = 7）。最常见的合并感染病毒是FluA + 呼吸道合胞病毒（n = 6）、Flu A + 乙型流感病毒 + SARS-CoV-2（n = 4）和SARS-CoV-2 + Flu A（n = 3）。老年人（年龄>65岁）通常感染Flu A（n = 9）和SARS-CoV-2（n = 5）。
病毒病原体在ARTIs患者中很常见。本研究强调除了传统诊断方法外，还应考虑使用RT-PCR来鉴定ARTIs患者的病毒病原体。
