title: Prospective population-based study of viral lower respiratory tract infections in children under 3 years of age (the PRI.DE study).
abstract: Population-based incidence data from Europe on the disease burden of lower respiratory tract infections (LRTI) due to respiratory syncytial viruses (RSV), parainfluenza viruses (PIV) and influenzaviruses (IV) are lacking, especially with respect to the disease burden. In a 2-year prospective multicentre study of children aged <3 years in Germany, we registered population-based cases as outpatients (n=2386), inpatients (n=2924), and nosocomially-acquired (n=141). Nasopharyngeal secretions were tested for viral RNA. The annual incidence for physician visits per 100 children for all LRTI was 28.7, RSV 7.7, PIV 3.8 and IV 1.1. Annual hospitalisation rates per 10(5) children were for all LRTI 2941, RSV 1117, PIV 261 and IV 123. Annual nosocomial cases per 10(5) hospital days were for all LRTI 79, RSV 29, PIV 9 and IV 1.5. All five children (0.27%) who died had an underlying disease and four were nosocomially acquired.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Hospitalisation rates due to lower respiratory tract infections in healthy children were similar to those reported elsewhere; the rates for outpatient visits were approximately ten times higher.
authors.affiliation: St. Josefs Hospital, Sautier Strasse 1, 79104 Freiburg, Germany. Johannes.Forster@rkk-sjk.de
authors.forename: Johannes
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Forster
authors.forename: Gabriele
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ihorst
authors.forename: Christian H L
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Rieger
authors.forename: Volker
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Stephan
authors.forename: Hans-Dieter
authors.initials: HD
authors.lastname: Frank
authors.forename: Heidrum
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Gurth
authors.forename: Reinhard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Berner
authors.forename: Angela
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rohwedder
authors.forename: Hermann
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Werchau
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Schumacher
authors.forename: Theodore
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Tsai
authors.forename: Gudula
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Petersen
mesh_terms: D002675:Child, Preschool; D003428:Cross Infection / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000821:virology; D005260:Female; D005858:Germany / Q000453:epidemiology; D006760:Hospitalization / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D009305:Nasopharynx / Q000821:virology; D009819:Office Visits / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D009975:Orthomyxoviridae / Q000302:isolation & purification; D010222:Parainfluenza Virus 1, Human / Q000302:isolation & purification; D010223:Parainfluenza Virus 2, Human / Q000302:isolation & purification; D010224:Parainfluenza Virus 3, Human / Q000302:isolation & purification; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000302:isolation & purification; D012136:Respiratory Syncytial Viruses / Q000302:isolation & purification; D012141:Respiratory Tract Infections / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000821:virology*; D012621:Seasons
chemical_list: D012367:RNA, Viral