Respiratory syncytial virus infection as a cause of hospitalization in population under 1 year in Colombia

Objective: to determine the frequency,complications and seasonality at which respiratory syncytial virus (rsv) infection of the lower respiratory tract causes hospitalization in infants of age 1 year or less in 6 cities of colombia. methods: one-year prospective multicentric observational study that included 717 patients presenting to the emergency department with respiratory symptoms in 6 cities of colombia. hospitalized children were tested for rsv with an immunofluorescence rapid test in nasopharyngeal secretions. descriptive and statistical analyses of the population were conducted. results: the study population included 717 patients with a mean age of 3.6 months (sd 3.25),4:3 male: female ratio and a positive rsv lrti prevalence of 30.0% (216 infants/city,range 26.0 - 49.0%). risk factors for rsv lrti were found in 8.2% of the population,of which 28.8% were rsv positive. rsv positive and negative groups were compared using a two-tailed t test with 95.0%ci,p < 0.05. no statistically significant differences were found. all cities presented specific year trimesters in the occurrence of rsv lrti. conclusions: the rsv caused 1 in 3 lrti hospitalizations in the population,with an incidence of 30.0%. this confirms a continuous circulation of rsv in colombia varying by geographic location. © 2013 sociedade brasileira de pediatria. published by elsevier editora ltda. all rights reserved.