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. 2024 Nov 26;21(1):303.
doi: 10.1186/s12985-024-02579-5.

Epidemiological characteristics of respiratory pathogens infections among children after the removal of non-pharmaceutical interventions in central China

Shun Liu  1 , Yao Lei  1 , Xiuxiu Chen  1 , Zihan Wen  1 , Bing Mei  2
Affiliations

Epidemiological characteristics of respiratory pathogens infections among children after the removal of non-pharmaceutical interventions in central China

Shun Liu et al. Virol J. .

Abstract

Background: During the COVID-19 pandemic between 2020 and 2022 in China, various non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) were implemented to reduce the spread of SARS-CoV-2 and other respiratory pathogens. From 2023, China downgraded the management of COVID-19, and compliance with NPIs was no longer mandatory. This study aimed to reveal the epidemiological characteristics of respiratory pathogens in 2023 after the removal of NPIs in central China.

Methods: Respiratory specimens of children with acute respiratory infections (ARIs) were obtained to detect seven common respiratory pathogens, including influenza A (FluA), influenza B (FluB), adenovirus (ADV), human rhinovirus (HRV), human respiratory syncytial virus (HRSV), human metapneumovirus (HMPV), Mycoplasma pneumoniae (MP). From January 2022 to December 2023, a total of 5423 specimens were collected, including 1122 children in 2022 and 4301 children in 2023.

Results: One or more pathogens were detected in 62.50% specimens in 2023, significantly higher than that in 2022 (44.12%). HRV (13.81%) was the most common pathogen in 2022, whereas MP (24.67%) was predominant in 2023. There was no significant difference in the overall prevalence of HRV, HRSV and HMPV between 2022 and 2023. HRSV was the most common pathogen in the < 1 years children both in 2022 and 2023. However in the ≥ 7 years group, FluB was the predominant pathogen in 2022 whereas MP ranked first in 2023. Co-detection were significantly more frequent in 2023 compared to 2022.

Conclusions: The removal of NPIs significantly increased the infection rates of the respiratory pathogens among children. Some NPIs, such as wearing mask and hand hygiene are necessary to decrease the prevalence of certain pathogens.

Keywords: COVID-19; Epidemiological characteristics; Jingzhou; Non-pharmaceutical interventions; Respiratory pathogens.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declarations. Ethics approval and consent to participate: All procedures performed in this study involving human participants were in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki (as revised in 2013). The study was approved by the Ethical Committee of Jingzhou Hospital Affiliated to Yangtze University (2023-073-01). Consent for publication: Not applicable. This manuscript does not contain any persons data in any form. Competing interests: The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Proportion of seven respiratory pathogens detected in 2022 (A) and 2023 (B)
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
Seasonal activity of seven respiratory pathogens during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2022 (black line) compared with after the removal of NPIs in 2023 (red line), including FluA (A), FluB (B), ADV (C), HRV (D), HRSV (E), HMPV (F) and MP (G)
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
Proportions of respiratory pathogens detected in 2022 (A) and 2023 (B) according to age group
Fig. 4
Fig. 4
Infection rate of seven respiratory pathogens in different age groups according to months in 2023 (blue line) compared with that in 2022 (gray line). The patients were divided into four age groups, including < 1 years (A), 1 − 3 years (B), 4 − 6 years (C), ≥ 7 years (D)
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