• FluTrackers.com Inc. does not provide medical advice. Information on this web site is collected from various internet resources, and the FluTrackers board of directors makes no warranty to the safety, efficacy, correctness or completeness of the information posted on this site by any author or poster. The information collated here is for instructional and/or discussion purposes only and is NOT intended to diagnose or treat any disease, illness, or other medical condition. Every individual reader or poster should seek advice from their personal physician/healthcare practitioner before considering or using any interventions that are discussed on this website. By continuing to access this website you agree to consult your personal physican before using any interventions posted on this website, and you agree to hold harmless FluTrackers.com Inc., the board of directors, the members, and all authors and posters for any effects from use of any medication, supplement, vitamin or other substance, device, intervention, etc. mentioned in posts on this website, or other internet venues referenced in posts on this website.
  • We are not asking for any donations. Do not donate to any entity who says they are raising funds for us.

High Prevalence of Viral Infections Among Hospitalized Pneumonia Patients in Equatorial Sarawak, Malaysia

tetano

Editor, Senior Moderator
Open Forum Infect Dis. 2019 Feb 13;6(3):ofz074. doi: 10.1093/ofid/ofz074. eCollection 2019 Mar.
[h=1]High Prevalence of Viral Infections Among Hospitalized Pneumonia Patients in Equatorial Sarawak, Malaysia.[/h] Toh TH[SUP]1,[/SUP][SUP]2,[/SUP][SUP]3[/SUP], Hii KC[SUP]4[/SUP], Fieldhouse JK[SUP]5,[/SUP][SUP]6[/SUP], Ting J[SUP]1,[/SUP][SUP]3[/SUP], Berita A[SUP]4[/SUP], Nguyen TT[SUP]7[/SUP], Wong SC[SUP]2,[/SUP][SUP]3[/SUP], Wong TM[SUP]1,[/SUP][SUP]8,[/SUP][SUP]3[/SUP], Lim WH[SUP]1[/SUP], Ha SJ[SUP]2,[/SUP][SUP]3[/SUP], Lau CZ[SUP]2[/SUP], Kong SL[SUP]4[/SUP], Bailey ES[SUP]5,[/SUP][SUP]6[/SUP], Warkentien TE[SUP]9[/SUP], Husain TS[SUP]9[/SUP], Gray GC[SUP]5,[/SUP][SUP]6,[/SUP][SUP]7[/SUP].
[h=3]Author information[/h]

[h=3]Abstract[/h] [h=4]Background:[/h] Although pneumonia is a known cause of morbidity and mortality in Sarawak, Malaysia, the etiology and epidemiology of pneumonia are not well described in this equatorial region. Routine clinical diagnostics for pneumonia etiology at government hospitals in Sarawak had historically involved only bacterial diagnostics. Viral diagnostics were only obtained through outside consultations.
[h=4]Methods:[/h] From June 15, 2017 to May 14, 2018, we collected nasopharyngeal swabs from 600 patients of all ages older than 1 month hospitalized with pneumonia at Sibu and Kapit Hospitals. Specimens were examined at our collaborating institutions with a panel of molecular assays for viral pathogens including influenza A (IAV), IBV, ICV, and IDV, human adenovirus (AdV), human enterovirus (EV), human coronavirus (CoV), respiratory syncytial virus subtype A (RSV-A) or RSV-B, and parainfluenza virus (PIV) types 1-4.
[h=4]Results:[/h] Of 599 samples examined, 288 (48%) had molecular evidence of 1 or more respiratory viruses. Overall, the most prevalent virus detected was RSV-A (14.2%) followed by AdV (10.4%) and IAV (10.4%), then RSV-B (6.2%), EV (4.2%), IBV (2.2%), PIV-3 (1.7%), CoV (1.0%), PIV-1 (1.0%), PIV-4 (0.7%), and PIV-2 (0.2%). No specimens were confirmed positive for ICV or IDV.
[h=4]Conclusions:[/h] The high prevalence of viruses detected in this study suggest that respiratory viruses may be responsible for considerable morbidity in equatorial regions such as Sarawak. Access to viral diagnostics are very necessary for medical staff to determine appropriate pneumonia treatments.


[h=4]KEYWORDS:[/h] adenoviruses; influenza; pneumonia; respiratory syncytial virus; respiratory viruses

PMID: 30949525 PMCID: PMC6440682 DOI: 10.1093/ofid/ofz074
 
Back
Top Bottom