Prevalence of Viruses in Acute Asthma Exacerbations in Childhood in a Hospital in West Part of Turkey

Selime Ozen Boluk; Ilke Taskirdi; Omer Akcal; Mehmet Sirin Kaya; Idil Akay Haci; Ozgen Soyoz; Figen Celebi Celik; Canan Sule Karkiner; Fahri Yuce Ayhan; Nesrin Gulez; Ferah Genel; Demet Can

doi:10.18502/ijaai.v21i2.9219

Selime Ozen Boluk Division of Allergy and Immunology, Department of Pediatrics, Dr Behcet Uz Children’s Education and Research Hospital, University of Health Sciences Izmir, Izmir, Turkey
Ilke Taskirdi Division of Allergy and Immunology, Department of Pediatrics, Dr Behcet Uz Children’s Education and Research Hospital, University of Health Sciences Izmir, Izmir, Turkey
Omer Akcal Division of Allergy and Immunology, Department of Pediatrics, Gaziantep Cengiz Gökçek Maternity and Children’s Hospital, Gaziantep, Turkey
Mehmet Sirin Kaya Division of Allergy and Immunology, Department of Pediatrics, Dr Behcet Uz Children’s Education and Research Hospital, University of Health Sciences Izmir, Izmir, Turkey
Idil Akay Haci Division of Allergy and Immunology, Department of Pediatrics, Dr Behcet Uz Children’s Education and Research Hospital, University of Health Sciences Izmir, Izmir, Turkey
Ozgen Soyoz Division of Allergy and Immunology, Department of Pediatrics, Dr Behcet Uz Children’s Education and Research Hospital, University of Health Sciences Izmir, Izmir, Turkey
Figen Celebi Celik Division of Allergy and Immunology, Department of Pediatrics, Dr Behcet Uz Children’s Education and Research Hospital, University of Health Sciences Izmir, Izmir, Turkey
Canan Sule Karkiner Division of Allergy and Immunology, Department of Pediatrics, Dr Behcet Uz Children’s Education and Research Hospital, University of Health Sciences Izmir, Izmir, Turkey
Fahri Yuce Ayhan Department of Microbiology, Dr Behcet Uz Children’s Education and Research Hospital, University of Health Sciences Izmir, Izmir, Turkey
Nesrin Gulez Division of Allergy and Immunology, Department of Pediatrics, Dr Behcet Uz Children’s Education and Research Hospital, University of Health Sciences Izmir, Izmir, Turkey
Ferah Genel Division of Allergy and Immunology, Department of Pediatrics, Dr Behcet Uz Children’s Education and Research Hospital, University of Health Sciences Izmir, Izmir, Turkey
Demet Can Departments of Pediatrics, Balıkesir University Faculty of Medicine, Balıkesir, Turkey

DOI: https://doi.org/10.18502/ijaai.v21i2.9219

Keywords: Acute asthma exacerbations; Polymerase chain reaction; Viruses

Abstract

Acute asthma exacerbations (AAE) are episodes characterized by potentially life-threatening and rapidly deteriorating asthma symptoms. Viral respiratory infections are one of the major triggers in the pathophysiology of childhood asthma exacerbations. In this study, we aimed to determine the distribution of viral agents among pediatric AAE patients.

One hundred and three AAE patients, aged 5 or older, hospitalized between from
February 2017 through February 2020 at Pediatric Immunology and Allergic Diseases Unit were included in this study. Fifty patients (48.5%) were female, and the mean age of the patients was 108.2 months. Viruses were detected in 58 (%56.3) of the patients, in 5 of whom more than one virus type was detected. The most commonly detected virus was human rhinovirus (n=43, 67.1%).

Other types included respiratory syncytial virus (n=8; 12.5%), influenza (n=6; 9.3%), human metapneumovirus (n=4; 6.2%), adenovirus (n=1; 1.5%), enterovirus (n=1; 1.5%), and parainfluenza (n=1; 1.5%). Viral agents were detected in 29 out of the 47 patients with allergic asthma, with human rhinoviruses comprising the majority (18 patients). The mean length of hospital stay was 7.89 days.

Human rhinovirus is the most common virus that triggers AAE, with similar distributions in allergic and non-allergic asthma. We found no correlation between virus type and the length of hospital stay.