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. 2025 Feb 7;15(1):25.
doi: 10.1186/s13568-025-01829-1.

The value of common blood parameters for the differential diagnosis of respiratory tract infections in children

Jun'e Ma #  1 , Ting Tian #  1 , Nianyi Zeng  1 , Yue Gu  1 , Xuewei Ren  1 , Zhengjiang Jin  2
Affiliations

The value of common blood parameters for the differential diagnosis of respiratory tract infections in children

Jun'e Ma et al. AMB Express. .

Abstract

Mycoplasma pneumoniae and influenza A virus are common pathogens that cause respiratory tract infection in children. Both pathogens present with similar clinical symptoms, and their epidemic periods often overlap. Consequently, it is challenging for clinicians to make a rapid preliminary diagnosis. However, common blood tests is simple and efficient, Therefore, the purpose of this study is to preliminarily distinguish Mycoplasma pneumoniae and influenza A virus infection in children by analyzing the results of common blood tests, thereby guiding clinical diagnosis and treatment.The results showed that, compared with children in the influenza A virus-positive group, children in the Mycoplasma pneumoniae-positive group had higher white blood cell (WBC), red blood cell (RBC), haemoglobin (HGB), platelet (PLT) counts, lymphocyte (LYM) and eosinophil (EOS) counts and ratios, as well as higher concentrations of C-reactive protein (CRP) and serum amyloid A (SAA), while neutrophil (NEU) and monocyte (MONO) counts and ratios, Neutrophil to Lymphocyte ratio( NLR) were lower, in addition, LYM, EOS counts and ratios, and NLR were all more effective in differentiating between the two pathogen infections, A combined analysis of these indicators further improved the differentiation efficacy. Therefore, LYM and EOS counts and ratios, along with NLR, can serve as effective blood parameters for differentiating Mycoplasma pneumoniae infections from influenza A virus infections in children.

Keywords: Influenza a virus; Mycoplasma pneumoniae; Common blood parameters; Differentiated effectiveness.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declarations. Ethics approval and consent to participate: In this study, we used existing data collected during the course of routine diagnostic procedures for children attending outpatient emergency clinics with symptoms of respiratory infections and did not pose any additional risks to the patients. The patient records and information were anonymized and deidentified prior to analysis. And this study was conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki. In view of the above situation, the Ethics Committee of the Maternal and Child Health Hospital of Hubei Province, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology approved this study, and agreed to waive the right to individual informed consent from the study patients. Consent for publication: Not applicable. Competing interests: The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
ROC curves for differentiation of two pathogen infections by common blood parameters
Fig. 2
Fig. 2
ROC curves for differentiation of two pathogen infections by CRP, SAA
Fig. 3
Fig. 3
ROC curves for differentiation of two pathogen infections by combination of multiple indicators
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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