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. 2023 Feb 10;13(1):2443.
doi: 10.1038/s41598-023-29410-5.

Pathogens associated with hospitalization due to acute lower respiratory tract infections in children in rural Ghana: a case-control study

Ralf Krumkamp  1   2 , Matin Kohsar  3 , Kolja Nolte  1 , Benedikt Hogan  1   4 , Daniel Eibach  1 , Anna Jaeger  1   2 , Charity Wiafe Akenten  5 , Christian Drosten  6 , Kennedy Gyau Boahen  5 , Nimako Sarpong  5 , Isabella Eckerle  7 , Tabea Binger  5 , Ellis Owusu-Dabo  8 , Jürgen May  1   2   9 , Benno Kreuels  10   11   12
Affiliations

Pathogens associated with hospitalization due to acute lower respiratory tract infections in children in rural Ghana: a case-control study

Ralf Krumkamp et al. Sci Rep. .

Abstract

Respiratory infections are one of the most common causes of death among children under the age of five years. Data on prevalence and relevance of specific organisms in African children are still lacking. This case-control-study investigated prevalence and relevance of specific organisms in Ghanaian children admitted to hospital with symptoms of lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI). Pharyngeal swabs were taken and tested by PCR for 19 respiratory isolates. Adjusted odds ratios (aORs) were calculated to estimate associations between isolates and admission with LRTI. Population attributable fractions (PAFs) were calculated to assess the proportion of LRTI cases due to a particular pathogen. The study included 327 cases and 562 controls. We found associations between detection and admission for LRTI for influenza (aOR 98.6; 95% confidence interval (CI) 20.0-1789.6), respiratory syncytial virus (aOR 40.2; 95% CI 7.2-758.6), H. influenzae (aOR 4.1; 95% CI 2.2-7.9) and S. pneumoniae (aOR 2.4; 95% CI 1.7-3.4). PAFs ≥ 10% were observed for S. pneumoniae (30%; 95% CI 26-42), H. influenzae (10%; 95% CI 2-19) and influenza (10%; 95% CI 2-18). This study highlights the need for heightened surveillance and development of effective vaccines for respiratory pathogens other than SARS-CoV-2 in the future.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no competing interests.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Recruitment of cases and controls during the study period.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Proportion of cases and controls with specific pathogens. Maximum number of isolates per case and control was six. On average 1.4 (SD: 1.1) isolates per case and 1.1 (SD: 1.2) isolates per control were diagnosed.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Proportion of infections in study participants over the study months. Monthly rainfall is shown in the bars, where a monthly precipitation > 125 mm is considered rainy season (dark grey bars).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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