Korean J Pediatr Infect Dis.  2007 May;14(1):75-82. 10.14776/kjpid.2007.14.1.75.

Clinical features of human metapneumovirus infection in children with acute respiratory tract infections

• Lee JS
• Seo HJ
• Woo JJ
• Jang SH
• Lee JA
• Song MO
• Park HY
• Ahn YM

• KMID: 2439966
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.14776/kjpid.2007.14.1.75

Abstract

PURPOSE
Human metapneumovirus (hMPV) is a newly identified paramyxovirus that causes a variety of clinical syndromes in children, including upper and lower respiratory tract illnesses. hMPV is considered an ubiquitous virus causing respiratory tract diseases among children especially during late winter and spring seasons. We report clinical features of human metapneumovirus infection in Korean children.
METHODS
hMPV infection was diagnosed by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) in respiratory specimens obtained from patients with acute respiratory tract infections from October, 2004 to May, 2005. Medical records of all hMPV-positive patients were reviewed, retrospectively.
RESULTS
A total of 15 hMPV were identified from 443 nasopharyngeal aspirations by RT-PCR (3.4%). The range of age of the patients with hMPV infection was from 1 month to 62 months (median age, 31.5 months), with similar numbers of females (8/15) and males (7/15). Among hMPV-positive children, 53.3% (8/15) were aged less than 24 months. Fever, cough, rhinorrhea, vomiting, diarrhea, tachypnea, and chest wall retractions were common findings. Most common clinical diagnosis was pneumonia (60%). Two of the 15 hMPV-positive patients were also positive for adenovirus. Fever persisted from 0 to 10 days (mean 4.9 days). The duration of hospitalization ranged from 4 to 7 days (mean 5.6 days).
CONCLUSION
hMPV accounted for a small but significant proportion of respiratory tract infection in infants and children. Future development and application of diagnostic tools will determine the burden of disease caused by this newly discovered pathogen.

Keyword

Human metapneumovirus (hMPV); Acute respiratory infections; Children

MeSH Terms

Adenoviridae
Aspirations (Psychology)
Child*
Cough
Diagnosis
Diarrhea
Female
Fever
Hospitalization
Humans*
Infant
Male
Medical Records
Metapneumovirus*
Pneumonia
Respiratory System*
Respiratory Tract Diseases
Respiratory Tract Infections*
Retrospective Studies
Seasons
Tachypnea
Thoracic Wall
Vomiting