Prevalence of rhinovirus in wheezing children: a comparison with respiratory syncytial virus wheezing

Risk Factors Affecting Development and Persistence of Preschool Wheezing: Consensus Document of the Emilia-Romagna Asthma (ERA) Study Group

Wheezing at preschool age (i.e., before the age of six) is common, occurring in about 30% of children before the age of three. In terms of health care burden, preschool children with wheeze show double the rate of access to the emergency department and five times the rate of hospital admissions compared with school-age asthmatics. The consensus document aims to analyse the underlying mechanisms involved in the pathogenesis of preschool wheezing and define the risk factors (i.e., allergy, atopy, infection, bronchiolitis, genetics, indoor and outdoor pollution, tobacco smoke exposure, obesity, prematurity) and the protective factors (i.e., probiotics, breastfeeding, vitamin D, influenza vaccination, non-specific immunomodulators) associated with the development of the disease in the young child. A multidisciplinary panel of experts from the Emilia-Romagna Region, Italy, addressed twelve key questions regarding managing preschool wheezing. Clinical questions have been formulated by the expert panel using the PICO format (Patients, Intervention, Comparison, Outcomes). Systematic reviews have been conducted on PubMed to answer these specific questions and formulate recommendations. The GRADE approach has been used for each selected paper to assess the quality of the evidence and the degree of recommendations. Based on a panel of experts and extensive updated literature, this consensus document provides insight into the pathogenesis, risk and protective factors associated with the development and persistence of preschool wheezing. Undoubtedly, more research is needed to improve our understanding of the disease and confirm the associations between certain factors and the risk of wheezing in early life. In addition, preventive strategies must be promoted to avoid children's exposure to risk factors that may permanently affect respiratory health.

Identification and seasonality of rhinovirus and respiratory syncytial virus in asthmatic children in tropical climate

INTRODUCTION

Asthma is a disease that has been associated with the presence of different genetic and socio-environmental factors.

OBJECTIVE

To identify and evaluate the seasonality of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and human rhinovirus (RV) in asthmatic children and adolescents in tropical climate, as well as to assess the socioeconomic and environmental factors involved.

METHODS

The study was conducted in a referral hospital, where a total of 151 children were recruited with a respiratory infection. The International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC) protocol and a questionnaire were applied, and a skin prick test was performed. The nasal swab was collected to detect RV and RSV through molecular assay. National Meteorological Institute (INMET) database was the source of climatic information.

RESULTS

The socio-environmental characterization of asthmatic children showed the family history of allergy, disturbed sleep at night, dry cough, allergic rhinitis, individuals sensitized to at least one mite. We identified RV in 75% of children with asthma and 66.7% of RSV in children with asthma. There was an association between the presence of RV and the dry season whereas the presence of the RSV was associated with the rainy season. Contributing to these results, a negative correlation was observed between the RSV and the wind speed and the maximum temperature (T. Max) and a positive correlation with precipitation.

CONCLUSIONS

The results suggest a high prevalence of RV and RSV in asthmatic children and the seasonality of these viruses were present in different climatic periods. This has significant implications for understanding short- and long-term clinical complications in asthmatic patients.

Prevalence of respiratory viruses using polymerase chain reaction in children with wheezing, a systematic review and meta-analysis

Introduction

Wheezing is a major problem in children, and respiratory viruses are often believed to be the causative agent. While molecular detection tools enable identification of respiratory viruses in wheezing children, it remains unclear if and how these viruses are associated with wheezing. The objective of this systematic review is to clarify the prevalence of different respiratory viruses in children with wheezing.

Methods

We performed an electronic in Pubmed and Global Index Medicus on 01 July 2019 and manual search. We performed search of studies that have detected common respiratory viruses in children ≤18 years with wheezing. We included only studies using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays. Study data were extracted and the quality of articles assessed. We conducted sensitivity, subgroup, publication bias, and heterogeneity analyses using a random effects model.

Results

The systematic review included 33 studies. Rhinovirus, with a prevalence of 35.6% (95% CI 24.6–47.3, I² 98.4%), and respiratory syncytial virus, at 31.0% (95% CI 19.9–43.3, I² 96.4%), were the most common viruses detected. The prevalence of other respiratory viruses was as follows: human bocavirus 8.1% (95% CI 5.3–11.3, I² 84.6%), human adenovirus 7.7% (95% CI 2.6–15.0, I² 91.0%), influenza virus6.5% (95% CI 2.2–12.6, I² 92.4%), human metapneumovirus5.8% (95% CI 3.4–8.8, I² 89.0%), enterovirus 4.3% (95% CI 0.1–12.9, I² 96.2%), human parainfluenza virus 3.8% (95% CI 1.5–6.9, I² 79.1%), and human coronavirus 2.2% (95% CI 0.6–4.4, I² 79.4%).

Conclusions

Our results suggest that rhinovirus and respiratory syncytial virus may contribute to the etiology of wheezing in children. While the clinical implications of molecular detection of respiratory viruses remains an interesting question, this study helps to illuminate the potential of role respiratory viruses in pediatric wheezing.

Review registration

PROSPERO, CRD42018115128.

The Problematic 2014 American Academy of Pediatrics Bronchiolitis Guidelines

The 2014 American Academy of Pediatrics bronchiolitis guidelines do not adequately serve the needs and clinical realities of front-line clinicians caring for undifferentiated wheezing infants and children. This article describes the clinical challenges of evaluating and managing a heterogeneous disease syndrome presenting as undifferentiated patients to the emergency department. Although the 2014 American Academy of Pediatrics bronchiolitis guidelines and the multiple international guidelines that they closely mirror have made a good faith attempt to provide clinicians with the best evidence-based recommendations possible, they have all failed to address practical, front-line clinical challenges. The therapeutic nihilism of the guidelines and the dissonance between many of the recommendations and frontline realities have had wide-ranging consequences. Nevertheless, newer evidence of therapeutic options is emerging and forecasts hope for more therapeutically optimistic recommendations with the next revision of the guidelines.

Impact of RSV Coinfection on Human Bocavirus in Children with Acute Respiratory Infections

OBJECTIVE

The objective of this study was to assess epidemiological and clinical features of human bocavirus (HBoV) coinfection with other viruses.

METHOD

Children coinfected with HBoV between January 2012 and December 2014 were enrolled and retrospectively reviewed.

RESULT

A total of 984 patients were stratified into five groups: HBoV infection alone (n = 249), respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection alone (n = 649), HBoV coinfection with RSV (n = 28), with human rhinovirus (HRV) (n = 39) and with other virus (n = 19). Length of hospitalization was longer in HBoV coinfection with RSV group than HBoV (9.0 days vs. 7.0 days, p = 0.001), RSV (9.0 days vs. 8.0 days, p = 0.016) infection alone group. Pneumonia was more common in the HBoV coinfection with RSV group compared with the HBoV, RSV infection alone group, respectively (75.0% vs. 44.2%, 31.3%, p < 0.001). HBoV DNA copy numbers (383 000 copies/ml) were positively correlated with the length of hospitalization (r = 0.334, p < 0.001).

CONCLUSION

HBoV coinfection with RSV increases HBoV infection severity.

Establishment of the nasal microbiota in the first 18 months of life: Correlation with early-onset rhinitis and wheezing

BACKGROUND

Dynamic establishment of the nasal microbiota in early life influences local mucosal immune responses and susceptibility to childhood respiratory disorders.

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this case-control study was to monitor, evaluate, and compare development of the nasal microbiota of infants with rhinitis and wheeze in the first 18 months of life with those of healthy control subjects.

METHODS

Anterior nasal swabs of 122 subjects belonging to the Growing Up in Singapore Towards Healthy Outcomes (GUSTO) birth cohort were collected longitudinally over 7 time points in the first 18 months of life. Nasal microbiota signatures were analyzed by using 16S rRNA multiplexed pair-end sequencing from 3 clinical groups: (1) patients with rhinitis alone (n = 28), (2) patients with rhinitis with concomitant wheeze (n = 34), and (3) healthy control subjects (n = 60).

RESULTS

Maturation of the nasal microbiome followed distinctive patterns in infants from both rhinitis groups compared with control subjects. Bacterial diversity increased over the period of 18 months of life in control infants, whereas infants with rhinitis showed a decreasing trend (P < .05). An increase in abundance of the Oxalobacteraceae family (Proteobacteria phylum) and Aerococcaceae family (Firmicutes phylum) was associated with rhinitis and concomitant wheeze (adjusted P < .01), whereas the Corynebacteriaceae family (Actinobacteria phylum) and early colonization with the Staphylococcaceae family (Firmicutes phylum; 3 weeks until 9 months) were associated with control subjects (adjusted P < .05). The only difference between the rhinitis and control groups was a reduced abundance of the Corynebacteriaceae family (adjusted P < .05). Determinants of nasal microbiota succession included sex, mode of delivery, presence of siblings, and infant care attendance.

CONCLUSION

Our results support the hypothesis that the nasal microbiome is involved in development of early-onset rhinitis and wheeze in infants.