Features of influenza’s course in combination with other viruses in children

Abstract

The objective. To evaluate the frequency and laboratory characteristics of pneumonia in children when influenza is combined with other respiratory viruses.Materials and methods. We examined 72 children aged 1 month to 17 years who were hospitalized in a specialized hospital in 2017–2019 with influenza type A (72 %) or B (28 %). The main group included 36 patients who had a laboratory-confirmed combination of influenza with other respiratory viruses, and the comparison group included 36 cases in which influenza was the only pathogen detected.Results. The analysis of the frequency of complications showed that in the main group, pneumonia developed significantly more often – in 22 % (8 children), and in the comparison group – in 6 % (2 children, p < 0.05).Conclusions. 1) The combination of influenza with other respiratory viruses is a risk factor for the development of pneumonia in children. 2) There are no significant changes in the indicators of clinical blood analysis in pneumonia developing against the background of influenza, including in combination with other respiratory viruses.