Vírus respiratórios em crianças menores de cinco anos de idade, com doença respiratória aguda, em Uberlândia, MG, no período de 2001 a 2004

Abstract

The most common viruses involved in acute respiratory diseases among young children are the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), influenzavirus (FLU), parainfluenzavirus (PIV), adenovirus (AdV) and human rhinovirus (HRV). The purpose of the present study was to identify the main respiratory viruses that affected children younger than five years old in Uberlândia, in Midwestern Brazil. Nasopharyngeal aspirates from 379 children attended at Hospital de Clínicas (HC/UFU), from 2001 to 2004, with acute respiratory disease, were collected and tested by either immunofluorescence assay (IFA) or reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). RSV was detected in 26.4% (100/379) of samples, FLU A and B in 9.5% (36/379), PIV 1, 2 and 3 in 6.3% (24/379) and AdV in 3.7% (14/379). Negative and indeterminate samples (205) by IFA were tested by RT-PCR for detection of HRV, and 29.6% (112/379) was positive. RSV, particularly among children in their first 6 months of life, and HRV cases showed highest incidence. For both virus, bronchiolitis and pneumonia/bronchopneumonia were the main nosological presentation among children less than 6 months, were RSV responded for 40,3% and 34,6% of the cases, respectively, and the HRV were detected in 25,0% of bronchiolitis cases and 15,4% of pneumonia/bronchopneumonia cases at the same referred age group. Negative samples by both IFA and RT-PCR might be indicative that other pathogens, such as coronavirus, human metapneumovirus and bacteria, could be the causative agent in these infections. Laboratorial diagnosis constituted an essential instrument to determine the incidence of the most common viruses in respiratory infections among young children in this region.