tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
Influenza Other Respir Viruses
. 2024 Apr;18(4):e13282.
doi: 10.1111/irv.13282. RSV Disease Burden in Primary Care in Italy: A Multi-Region Pediatric Study, Winter Season 2022-2023
Michela Scarpaci[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Sara Bracaloni[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Enrica Esposito[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Luigi De Angelis[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Francesco Baglivo[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Beatrice Casini[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Donatella Panatto[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Matilde Ogliastro[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Daniela Loconsole[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Maria Chironna[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Elena Pariani[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Laura Pellegrinelli[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Elisabetta Pandolfi[SUP] 5 [/SUP], Ileana Croci[SUP] 5 [/SUP], Caterina Rizzo[SUP] 1 [/SUP]; RSVComNet Italia
Collaborators, Affiliations
Introduction: Human respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is one of the most frequent causes of respiratory infections in children under 5 years of age, but its socioeconomic impact and burden in primary care settings is still little studied.
Methods: During the 2022/2023 winter season, 55 pediatricians from five Italian regions participated in our community-based study. They collected a nasal swab for RSV molecular test from 650 patients under the age of 5 with acute respiratory infections (ARIs) and performed a baseline questionnaire. The clinical and socioeconomic burden of RSV disease in primary care was evaluated by two follow-up questionnaires completed by the parents of positive children on Days 14 and 30.
Results: RSV laboratory-confirmed cases were 37.8% of the total recruited ARI cases, with RSV subtype B accounting for the majority (65.4%) of RSV-positive swabs. RSV-positive children were younger than RSV-negative ones (median 12.5 vs. 16.5 months). The mean duration of symptoms for all children infected by RSV was 11.47 ± 6.27 days. We did not observe substantial differences in clinical severity between the two RSV subtypes, but RSV-A positive patients required more additional pediatric examinations than RSV-B cases. The socioeconomic impact of RSV infection was considerable, causing 53% of children to be absent from school, 46% of parents to lose working days, and 25% of families to incur extra costs.
Conclusions: Our findings describe a baseline of the RSV disease burden in primary care in Italy before the introduction of upcoming immunization strategies.
Keywords: RSV; acute respiratory infections; primary care; respiratory infection surveillance.
. 2024 Apr;18(4):e13282.
doi: 10.1111/irv.13282. RSV Disease Burden in Primary Care in Italy: A Multi-Region Pediatric Study, Winter Season 2022-2023
Michela Scarpaci[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Sara Bracaloni[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Enrica Esposito[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Luigi De Angelis[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Francesco Baglivo[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Beatrice Casini[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Donatella Panatto[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Matilde Ogliastro[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Daniela Loconsole[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Maria Chironna[SUP] 3 [/SUP], Elena Pariani[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Laura Pellegrinelli[SUP] 4 [/SUP], Elisabetta Pandolfi[SUP] 5 [/SUP], Ileana Croci[SUP] 5 [/SUP], Caterina Rizzo[SUP] 1 [/SUP]; RSVComNet Italia
Collaborators, Affiliations
- PMID: 38622776
- DOI: 10.1111/irv.13282
Introduction: Human respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is one of the most frequent causes of respiratory infections in children under 5 years of age, but its socioeconomic impact and burden in primary care settings is still little studied.
Methods: During the 2022/2023 winter season, 55 pediatricians from five Italian regions participated in our community-based study. They collected a nasal swab for RSV molecular test from 650 patients under the age of 5 with acute respiratory infections (ARIs) and performed a baseline questionnaire. The clinical and socioeconomic burden of RSV disease in primary care was evaluated by two follow-up questionnaires completed by the parents of positive children on Days 14 and 30.
Results: RSV laboratory-confirmed cases were 37.8% of the total recruited ARI cases, with RSV subtype B accounting for the majority (65.4%) of RSV-positive swabs. RSV-positive children were younger than RSV-negative ones (median 12.5 vs. 16.5 months). The mean duration of symptoms for all children infected by RSV was 11.47 ± 6.27 days. We did not observe substantial differences in clinical severity between the two RSV subtypes, but RSV-A positive patients required more additional pediatric examinations than RSV-B cases. The socioeconomic impact of RSV infection was considerable, causing 53% of children to be absent from school, 46% of parents to lose working days, and 25% of families to incur extra costs.
Conclusions: Our findings describe a baseline of the RSV disease burden in primary care in Italy before the introduction of upcoming immunization strategies.
Keywords: RSV; acute respiratory infections; primary care; respiratory infection surveillance.