Hospital-acquired viral respiratory infections in neonates hospitalized since birth in a tertiary neonatal intensive care unit

Objectiveto determine frequency of hospital-acquired viral respiratory infections (ha-vri) and associated outcomes in a nicu.study designprospective cohort study conducted from 4 october 2016 to 21 march 2017. infants hospitalized from birth in the nicu had a weekly nasal swab collected for testing using a multiplex pcr assay capable of detecting 16 different respiratory viruses.resultsseventy-four infants enrolled, with 5 (6.8%) testing positive for a virus (incidence rate of 1.3/1000 patient days). vri positive infants had a younger gestational age (median 27 w vs. 32 w, p = 0.048); were hospitalized longer (97 d vs 43 d, p = 0.013); required more antibiotics (8 d vs. 4 d, p = 0.037) and were more likely to be diagnosed with bronchopulmonary dysplasia (p = 0.008) compared to vri negative infants.conclusionrespiratory viruses are a frequent cause of hai in the nicu and are associated with negative outcomes.