Prevalence of Urinary Tract Infection, Bacteremia, and Meningitis Among Febrile Infants Aged 8 to 60 Days With SARS-CoV-2

Abstract

Importance: The prevalence of urinary tract infection (UTI), bacteremia, and bacterial meningitis in febrile infants with SARS-CoV-2 is largely unknown. Knowledge of the prevalence of these bacterial infections among febrile infants with SARS-CoV-2 can inform clinical decision-making.

Objective: To describe the prevalence of UTI, bacteremia, and bacterial meningitis among febrile infants aged 8 to 60 days with SARS-CoV-2 vs without SARS-CoV-2.

Design, setting, and participants: This multicenter cross-sectional study was conducted as part of a quality improvement initiative at 106 hospitals in the US and Canada. Participants included full-term, previously healthy, well-appearing infants aged 8 to 60 days without bronchiolitis and with a temperature of at least 38 °C who underwent SARS-CoV-2 testing in the emergency department or hospital between November 1, 2020, and October 31, 2022. Statistical analysis was performed from September 2022 to March 2023.

Exposures: SARS-CoV-2 positivity and, for SARS-CoV-2-positive infants, the presence of normal vs abnormal inflammatory marker (IM) levels.

Main outcomes and measures: Outcomes were ascertained by medical record review and included the prevalence of UTI, bacteremia without meningitis, and bacterial meningitis. The proportion of infants who were SARS-CoV-2 positive vs negative was calculated for each infection type, and stratified by age group and normal vs abnormal IMs.

Results: Among 14 402 febrile infants with SARS-CoV-2 testing, 8413 (58.4%) were aged 29 to 60 days; 8143 (56.5%) were male; and 3753 (26.1%) tested positive. Compared with infants who tested negative, a lower proportion of infants who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 had UTI (0.8% [95% CI, 0.5%-1.1%]) vs 7.6% [95% CI, 7.1%-8.1%]), bacteremia without meningitis (0.2% [95% CI, 0.1%-0.3%] vs 2.1% [95% CI, 1.8%-2.4%]), and bacterial meningitis (<0.1% [95% CI, 0%-0.2%] vs 0.5% [95% CI, 0.4%-0.6%]). Among infants aged 29 to 60 days who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, 0.4% (95% CI, 0.2%-0.7%) had UTI, less than 0.1% (95% CI, 0%-0.2%) had bacteremia, and less than 0.1% (95% CI, 0%-0.1%) had meningitis. Among SARS-CoV-2-positive infants, a lower proportion of those with normal IMs had bacteremia and/or bacterial meningitis compared with those with abnormal IMs (<0.1% [0%-0.2%] vs 1.8% [0.6%-3.1%]).

Conclusions and relevance: The prevalence of UTI, bacteremia, and bacterial meningitis was lower for febrile infants who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2, particularly infants aged 29 to 60 days and those with normal IMs. These findings may help inform management of certain febrile infants who test positive for SARS-CoV-2.