Incidence of Respiratory syncytial virus among young children in United Arab Emirates

Abstract

Background: Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is the most common cause of acute lower respiratory tract infections among children less than 2 years old. The aim of this study is to determine the incidence of RSV infection in children < 2 years old and to evaluate the seasonal variation of this virus in United Arab Emirates (UAE) between 2018- and 2020. Methods: This was a retrospective study and data was collected for all patients less than 24 months of age who visited the University Hospital Sharjah (UHS) with acute respiratory tract infections (ARTIs) from 1^st January 2018 to 1^st January 2020. Seasonal variations were determined by analyzing the monthly RSV‐positive isolation cases via time series analysis. Results: Of the 2496 children diagnosed with ARTIs, 496 (18.79%) were detected positive for RSV antigen with males being more likely to be infected (53.8%) than females (46.2%). Moreover, higher RSV positive cases were found among infants ≤ 6-onths old (39.7%) than children > 6 months old (5.4%). Also, children > 6 months of age and who were born by cesarean section were more prone to infection by RSV than other ages. Viral and bacterial co-infections have also been observed among 3.8% of the positive cases. Regarding the seasonality of RSV infection, it was detected in winter and peaked in October to December, while two small peaks were observed in January, April and May. Conclusions: The pattern of RSV in the UAE parallels that of tropical countries. These findings may guide in efforts towards healthcare provision, vaccination, and implementation of RSV prevention.