Epidemiological Changes in Hospitalized Bronchiolitis in Children Under 2 Years of Age in Hangzhou Before and After COVID-19 Restriction Easing
Xuchen Xu,1,* Xiya Chen,1,* Jing He,1,* Lin Su,1 Xudong Tong,2 Ying Sun,1 Shumin Huang,1 Guannan Bai,1 Zhimin Chen1 1Department of Pulmonology, Children’s Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, National Clinical Research Center for Child Health., Hangzhou, Zhejiang...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Dove Medical Press
2025-02-01
|
| Series: | Infection and Drug Resistance |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.dovepress.com/epidemiological-changes-in-hospitalized-bronchiolitis-in-children-unde-peer-reviewed-fulltext-article-IDR |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1823857957252628480 |
|---|---|
| author | Xu X Chen X He J Su L Tong X Sun Y Huang S Bai G Chen Z |
| author_facet | Xu X Chen X He J Su L Tong X Sun Y Huang S Bai G Chen Z |
| author_sort | Xu X |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Xuchen Xu,1,* Xiya Chen,1,* Jing He,1,* Lin Su,1 Xudong Tong,2 Ying Sun,1 Shumin Huang,1 Guannan Bai,1 Zhimin Chen1 1Department of Pulmonology, Children’s Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, National Clinical Research Center for Child Health., Hangzhou, Zhejiang, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Paediatrics, Cixi Maternity and Child Health Care Hospital, Ningbo, Zhejiang, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Zhimin Chen; Guannan Bai, Email zmchen@zju.edu.cn; guannanbai@zju.edu.cnBackground: Bronchiolitis is a common cause of hospitalization in infants under 2 years of age. The epidemiological effects of changes in hygiene and social behaviors during COVID-19 restrictions on the disease is still debated. This study aimed to analyze the changes in the viral etiology of bronchiolitis in Hangzhou during the COVID-19 restriction period (2022) compared to the period following the easing of restrictions(2023).Methods: This study collected data on patients under 2 years of age who were admitted for bronchiolitis to the Department of Pulmonology at the Children’s Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine (Hangzhou) from January, 1, 2022, to December 31, 2023. It also investigated seasonal variations in the incidence of bronchiolitis and pathogen distribution across different years.Results: This study included a total of 697 children with bronchiolitis, with a median age of 7.5 (4.2– 12.0) months. Of these, 68.9% were boys and 31.1% were girls. Compared to 2022, the number of bronchiolitis cases in 2023 (388 versus 309) and their proportion of lower respiratory tract infections (39.1% versus 28.2%) have significantly increased (p < 0.001). Whether in 2022 or 2023, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) was the primary pathogen causing bronchiolitis among children under 12 months of age, while human rhinovirus (HRV) was the main pathogen in children aged 12– 24 months. There was a shift in the timing of the peak of several viruses including RSV, human metapneumovirus (HMPV) and parainfluenza virus (PIV) infections in 2023. However, the epidemic trend of HRV presented no significant changes between 2022 and 2023.Conclusion: The findings suggest that bronchiolitis hospitalizations increased markedly after COVID-19 restriction easing, particularly among children aged 12– 18 months. There was a shift in the timing of the peak of several viruses including RSV, HMPV and PIV infections in 2023, emphasizing the need for hospitals to anticipate potential irregularities in time in the future.Keywords: RSV, COVID-19, bronchiolitis, non-pharmaceutical interventions |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-1a731269e0e84b8fbd0a4b8bda04a696 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1178-6973 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-02-01 |
| publisher | Dove Medical Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Infection and Drug Resistance |
| spelling | doaj-art-1a731269e0e84b8fbd0a4b8bda04a6962025-02-11T17:30:55ZengDove Medical PressInfection and Drug Resistance1178-69732025-02-01Volume 18835845100084Epidemiological Changes in Hospitalized Bronchiolitis in Children Under 2 Years of Age in Hangzhou Before and After COVID-19 Restriction EasingXu XChen XHe JSu LTong XSun YHuang SBai GChen ZXuchen Xu,1,* Xiya Chen,1,* Jing He,1,* Lin Su,1 Xudong Tong,2 Ying Sun,1 Shumin Huang,1 Guannan Bai,1 Zhimin Chen1 1Department of Pulmonology, Children’s Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, National Clinical Research Center for Child Health., Hangzhou, Zhejiang, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Paediatrics, Cixi Maternity and Child Health Care Hospital, Ningbo, Zhejiang, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Zhimin Chen; Guannan Bai, Email zmchen@zju.edu.cn; guannanbai@zju.edu.cnBackground: Bronchiolitis is a common cause of hospitalization in infants under 2 years of age. The epidemiological effects of changes in hygiene and social behaviors during COVID-19 restrictions on the disease is still debated. This study aimed to analyze the changes in the viral etiology of bronchiolitis in Hangzhou during the COVID-19 restriction period (2022) compared to the period following the easing of restrictions(2023).Methods: This study collected data on patients under 2 years of age who were admitted for bronchiolitis to the Department of Pulmonology at the Children’s Hospital, Zhejiang University School of Medicine (Hangzhou) from January, 1, 2022, to December 31, 2023. It also investigated seasonal variations in the incidence of bronchiolitis and pathogen distribution across different years.Results: This study included a total of 697 children with bronchiolitis, with a median age of 7.5 (4.2– 12.0) months. Of these, 68.9% were boys and 31.1% were girls. Compared to 2022, the number of bronchiolitis cases in 2023 (388 versus 309) and their proportion of lower respiratory tract infections (39.1% versus 28.2%) have significantly increased (p < 0.001). Whether in 2022 or 2023, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) was the primary pathogen causing bronchiolitis among children under 12 months of age, while human rhinovirus (HRV) was the main pathogen in children aged 12– 24 months. There was a shift in the timing of the peak of several viruses including RSV, human metapneumovirus (HMPV) and parainfluenza virus (PIV) infections in 2023. However, the epidemic trend of HRV presented no significant changes between 2022 and 2023.Conclusion: The findings suggest that bronchiolitis hospitalizations increased markedly after COVID-19 restriction easing, particularly among children aged 12– 18 months. There was a shift in the timing of the peak of several viruses including RSV, HMPV and PIV infections in 2023, emphasizing the need for hospitals to anticipate potential irregularities in time in the future.Keywords: RSV, COVID-19, bronchiolitis, non-pharmaceutical interventionshttps://www.dovepress.com/epidemiological-changes-in-hospitalized-bronchiolitis-in-children-unde-peer-reviewed-fulltext-article-IDRrsvcovid-19bronchiolitisnon-pharmaceutical interventions |
| spellingShingle | Xu X Chen X He J Su L Tong X Sun Y Huang S Bai G Chen Z Epidemiological Changes in Hospitalized Bronchiolitis in Children Under 2 Years of Age in Hangzhou Before and After COVID-19 Restriction Easing Infection and Drug Resistance rsv covid-19 bronchiolitis non-pharmaceutical interventions |
| title | Epidemiological Changes in Hospitalized Bronchiolitis in Children Under 2 Years of Age in Hangzhou Before and After COVID-19 Restriction Easing |
| title_full | Epidemiological Changes in Hospitalized Bronchiolitis in Children Under 2 Years of Age in Hangzhou Before and After COVID-19 Restriction Easing |
| title_fullStr | Epidemiological Changes in Hospitalized Bronchiolitis in Children Under 2 Years of Age in Hangzhou Before and After COVID-19 Restriction Easing |
| title_full_unstemmed | Epidemiological Changes in Hospitalized Bronchiolitis in Children Under 2 Years of Age in Hangzhou Before and After COVID-19 Restriction Easing |
| title_short | Epidemiological Changes in Hospitalized Bronchiolitis in Children Under 2 Years of Age in Hangzhou Before and After COVID-19 Restriction Easing |
| title_sort | epidemiological changes in hospitalized bronchiolitis in children under 2 years of age in hangzhou before and after covid 19 restriction easing |
| topic | rsv covid-19 bronchiolitis non-pharmaceutical interventions |
| url | https://www.dovepress.com/epidemiological-changes-in-hospitalized-bronchiolitis-in-children-unde-peer-reviewed-fulltext-article-IDR |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT xux epidemiologicalchangesinhospitalizedbronchiolitisinchildrenunder2yearsofageinhangzhoubeforeandaftercovid19restrictioneasing AT chenx epidemiologicalchangesinhospitalizedbronchiolitisinchildrenunder2yearsofageinhangzhoubeforeandaftercovid19restrictioneasing AT hej epidemiologicalchangesinhospitalizedbronchiolitisinchildrenunder2yearsofageinhangzhoubeforeandaftercovid19restrictioneasing AT sul epidemiologicalchangesinhospitalizedbronchiolitisinchildrenunder2yearsofageinhangzhoubeforeandaftercovid19restrictioneasing AT tongx epidemiologicalchangesinhospitalizedbronchiolitisinchildrenunder2yearsofageinhangzhoubeforeandaftercovid19restrictioneasing AT suny epidemiologicalchangesinhospitalizedbronchiolitisinchildrenunder2yearsofageinhangzhoubeforeandaftercovid19restrictioneasing AT huangs epidemiologicalchangesinhospitalizedbronchiolitisinchildrenunder2yearsofageinhangzhoubeforeandaftercovid19restrictioneasing AT baig epidemiologicalchangesinhospitalizedbronchiolitisinchildrenunder2yearsofageinhangzhoubeforeandaftercovid19restrictioneasing AT chenz epidemiologicalchangesinhospitalizedbronchiolitisinchildrenunder2yearsofageinhangzhoubeforeandaftercovid19restrictioneasing |