Premorbid factors and outcome associated with respiratory virus infections in a pediatric intensive care unit

Severe Childhood Respiratory Viral Infections

“…Because there is no virus-specific therapy, serious adenovirus illness can be managed only by treating symptoms and complications of the infection. Deaths are rare but have been reported [17]. Strict attention to good infection control practices is effective for stopping nosocomial outbreaks of adenovirus-associated disease, such as epidemic keratoconjunctivitis.…”

“…Croup is most often caused by parainfluenza virus, with types 1 and 2 responsible for the majority of cases [92,93]. However, other viral infections can also cause it [17]. Croup is most common in the fall and winter but can occur year-round, with a slight predilection for males [92].…”

“…Children with moderate to severe croup are hospitalized for observation. Intubation is rarely needed [17].…”

“…Severe forms of respiratory viral infections are rare in children but may lead to life-threatening conditions, such as severe pneumonia necessitating PICU admission and occasionally resulting in death [17,122]. Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is a significant cause of childhood morbidity and mortality worldwide.…”

“…Among hospital admissions, a small percentage of children would require pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) support [13][14][15][16]. Hon and colleagues [17] reported the clinical pattern and outcome of all children with a laboratory-proven diagnosis of respiratory virus infection admitted to the PICU of a teaching hospital. Three respiratory virus species, RSV (n ¼ 17), influenza (n ¼ 13), and parainfluenza (n ¼ 12), accounted for 86% of cases.…”