Evaluation of Virus Detection in Pediatric Patients Hospitalized with Respiratory Tract Infections Using Quantitative Multiplex PCR

Respiratory tract infections (RTIs) are common in children. Viruses are known to be related to most pediatric infections. However, some pediatric cases of RTI have been found to be associated with multiple viruses. In this study, we collected samples from the nasopharynx of all pediatric patients admitted to our hospital with RTI between April 2022 and March 2023 and performed multiple quantitative real-time PCRs. Out of 77 patients involved, 67 (87.0%) tested positive for some or the other virus. Rhinovirus was the most detected, followed by the RS virus and parainfluenza virus type 3. Among the patients, 18 (26.9%) had multiple viral infections and 14 had complications associated with obstructive respiratory diseases, including bronchial asthma, acute bronchiolitis, and asthmatic bronchitis. Furthermore, some cases were found to have both the main and non-main viruses. Multiple viruses were detected in approximately one-fourth of the children with RTIs; complications associated with obstructive respiratory diseases were considered to be the main factors.