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. 2024 Jan 16;16(1):126.
doi: 10.3390/v16010126.

Characteristics of Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infections in Children in the Post-COVID Seasons: A Northern Italy Hospital Experience

Davide Treggiari  1 , Chiara Pomari  2 , Giorgio Zavarise  3 , Chiara Piubelli  1 , Fabio Formenti  1 , Francesca Perandin  1
Affiliations

Characteristics of Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infections in Children in the Post-COVID Seasons: A Northern Italy Hospital Experience

Davide Treggiari et al. Viruses. .

Abstract

Background: Public health measures for COVID-19 mitigation influenced the circulation of Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) during the 2020-2021 winter season. In the following autumn, an unprecedented resurgence of RSV occurred. Our study monitored RSV pediatric infections one and two years after the relaxation of containment measures for the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: We analyzed diagnostic molecular data for SARS-CoV-2, flu, and RSV infections and clinical data from children with respiratory symptoms referring to our hospital during the 2021-2022 and 2022-2023 seasons.

Results: In the 2021-2022 season, the number of RSV-affected children was very high, especially for babies <1 year. The outbreak appeared in a shorter interval of time, with a high clinical severity. In the 2022-23 season, a reduced number of infected pediatric patients were detected, with a similar hospitalization rate (46% vs. 40%), and RSV accounted for 12% of the infections. Coinfections were observed in age <2 years. In RSV patients, symptoms were similar across the two seasons.

Conclusions: The clinical presentation of RSV in the two post-COVID seasons suggests that the pathophysiology of the virus did not change across these two years. Further studies are needed to continuously monitor RSV to support an effective prevention strategy.

Keywords: acute respiratory infection; bronchiolitis; epidemiology; hypertransaminasemia; respiratory syncytial virus; surveillance.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflicts of interest, and the funders had no role in the design of the study, in the collection, analyses, or interpretation of data, in the writing of the manuscript, or in the decision to publish the results.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Epidemic trend of RSV, influenza, and SARS-CoV-2 infections from hospitalized children in our hospital during the seasons 2021–2022 and 2022–2023. The lines are represented by the following color code: Black line for RSV; red line for influenza; green line for SARS-CoV-2.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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