title: Human metapneumovirus-associated hospital admissions over five consecutive epidemic seasons: evidence for alternating circulation of different genotypes.
abstract: Human metapneumovirus (hMPV) is a pathogen of the respiratory tract with a worldwide distribution. The purpose of this study was to identify hMPV as the cause of acute respiratory diseases in children admitted at Spedali Civili, a public hospital in Brescia, Italy. Eight hundred forty-six nasopharyngeal aspirate samples negative for the presence of other common respiratory viruses were tested for the presence of hMPV RNA by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. Of the 846 samples, 79 (9.3%) were positive for hMPV. Polymerase chain reaction products, obtained by amplification of the partial nucleotide sequence of gene F, were sequenced and compared with sequences deposited in GenBank. All four hMPV subtypes were identified, including the proposed subtype A2 sublineages "A" and "B". In successive epidemic seasons, large outbreaks of hMPV alternated with small outbreaks in a biannual pattern. This local study provides further evidence that hMPV infection should be considered as a reason for hospital admission for acute respiratory disease in children.
authors.affiliation: Department of Experimental and Applied Medicine, Section of Microbiology, University of Brescia Medical School, Brescia, Italy.
authors.forename: Paola
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Apostoli
authors.forename: Sonia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Zicari
authors.forename: Alessandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Lo Presti
authors.forename: Massimo
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ciccozzi
authors.forename: Marco
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ciotti
authors.forename: Arnaldo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Caruso
authors.forename: Simona
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Fiorentini
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000367:Age Factors; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D058872:Epidemics; D005260:Female; D005838:Genotype; D006760:Hospitalization; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D029121:Metapneumovirus / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D018184:Paramyxoviridae Infections / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000453:epidemiology*; D010802:Phylogeny; D012621:Seasons