The Variation Pattern and the Distribution Comparative Analysis of Bacterial Pathogenic Spectrum of Children from Different Age Groups and Adults

Abstract

Background To obtain the pathogenic spectrum of infectious diseases of different development phases of children from different regions of Shandong Province, we collected the data of pathogens from 40 hospitals in 17 cities of Shandong Province, and aimed at promoting the management and reasonable application of children's antibacterial agents. Methods We collected the bacterial drug resistance monitoring information from 26,778 strains isolated from children from 40 hospitals in 17 cities of Shandong Province (including 35 Grade 3A tertiary hospitals and 5 secondary hospitals) in 2017, and analyzed the variation pattern and the comparative distribution features of the pathogenic spectrum changing with age, season and gender. Results Pathogenic spectrum changes along with children's age. For example, Streptococcus pneumonia and Haemophilus influenza show a significant feature of normal distribution as the age increases. The distribution of pathogenic spectrum is significantly affected by season change. Infections reveal inequality between the sexes. Conclusion We first established a provincial-level pediatric antimicrobial surveillance system (Shandong Province Pediatric Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance System, SPARSS) in China. Supported by the analysis of big data for the first time, we confirmed that the pathogenic spectrums for children from different development stages and seasons are completely different. Besides, we also found the evidence for facts that men in general live shorter lives than women, and boys are more easily to be infected compared with girls. In order to promote reasonable and standard application of antimicrobial drugs on children, clinical doctors should choose antibiotics according to the results of the variation pattern and the distribution comparative analysis of pathogenic spectrum for children from different age groups concluded by our study.