Incidence and seasonality of respiratory viruses among medically attended children with acute respiratory infections in an Ecuador birth cohort, 2011–2014

• Published in: Influenza and other respiratory viruses 2022-01, Vol.16 (1), p.24-33
• Main Authors: Azziz‐Baumgartner, Eduardo, Bruno, Alfredo, Daugherty, Michael, Chico, Martha E., Lopez, Andrea, Arriola, Carmen Sofia, Mora, Domenica, Ropero, Alba María, Davis, William W., McMorrow, Meredith, Cooper, Philip J.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Adenoviruses; Age; Birth Cohort; Bronchitis; burden; Child; Child, Preschool; Children; Coronaviruses; Cough; Demographics; Ecuador; Ecuador - epidemiology; Enrollments; Enteroviruses; Epidemics; Fever; Health surveillance; Households; Humans; Hygiene; Identification methods; Illnesses; Immunization; Incidence; Infant; Infections; Influenza; Influenza, Human - epidemiology; Monoclonal antibodies; Mothers; Original; Parents & parenting; Pneumonia; Polymerase chain reaction; Prevention; Public health; Respiratory diseases; Respiratory syncytial virus; Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infections - epidemiology; Respiratory Syncytial Virus, Human; Respiratory tract infection; Respiratory Tract Infections; Rhinovirus; Seasonal variations; Seasons; Signs and symptoms; Southern Hemisphere; Vaccination; Vaccines; Viruses; Viruses - genetics
• ISSN: 1750-2640; 1750-2659
• DOI: 10.1111/irv.12887

Background Ecuador annually has handwashing and respiratory hygiene campaigns and seasonal influenza vaccination to prevent respiratory virus illnesses but has yet to quantify disease burden and determine epidemic timing. Methods To identify respiratory virus burden and assess months with epidemic activity, we followed a birth cohort in northwest Ecuador during 2011–2014. Mothers brought children to the study clinic for routine checkups at ages 1, 2, 3, 5, and 8 years or if children experienced any acute respiratory illness symptoms (e.g., cough, fever, or difficulty breathing); clinical care was provided free of charge. Those with medically attended acute respiratory infections (MAARIs) were tested for common respiratory viruses via real‐time reverse‐transcription polymerase chain reaction (rRT‐PCR). Results In 2011, 2376 children aged 1–4 years (median 35 months) were enrolled in the respiratory cohort and monitored for 7017.5 child‐years (cy). The incidence of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) was 23.9 (95% CI 17.3–30.5), influenza 10.6 (2.4–18.8), adenoviruses 6.7 (4.6–28.0), parainfluenzas 5.0 (2.3–10.5), and rhinoviruses, bocaviruses, human metapneumoviruses, seasonal coronaviruses, and enteroviruses