What is the clinical evidence from this study?

Study design: Observational. Population: Enterovirus infection (n=8426). Intervention: Enterovirus infection. Primary outcome: Enterovirus detection rate.

What question did this study set out to answer?

To evaluate the clinical, demographic, and epidemiological features of hospitalized children with enterovirus infections over a ten-year period.

March 9, 2026BMC Infectious DiseasesOpen Access

Clinical and epidemiological characteristics of hospitalized children with enterovirus infection: a retrospective study from 2016 to 2025 at Beijing children’s hospital

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Key result

Enterovirus in hospitalized children carries ~2% mortality, driven by multiple organ dysfunction and brainstem encephalitis.

n=8,426

Why the study?

Systematic surveillance for non-HFMD enterovirus diseases is lacking in China, and long-term epidemiological data on pediatric enterovirus infections in Beijing are scarce.

Key Points

To evaluate the clinical, demographic, and epidemiological features of hospitalized children with enterovirus infections over a ten-year period.
Retrospective single-center study analyzing 8,426 pediatric inpatients tested for enterovirus RNA via real-time PCR between July 2016 and July 2025 at Beijing Children's Hospital.
Extracted demographic, clinical, imaging, and laboratory data from electronic medical records to assess department distribution, age, sex, seasonality, and clinical outcomes.
Enterovirus RNA was detected in 2.80% of patients (236/8,426), with significantly higher rates in males (3.14%, 160/4,940) than females (2.18%, 76/3,486; P = 0.000) and peak positivity in summer (6.01%, 132/2,197) and autumn (3.61%, 76/2,106).
Among 205 patients with complete records, viral encephalitis was the primary diagnosis (55.12%, 113/205), followed by myocardial injury/myocarditis (23.41%, 48/205), pneumonia (22.93%, 47/205), hepatic dysfunction (14.63%, 30/205), and multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (8.78%, 18/205).
A favorable prognosis occurred in 98.05% of patients (201/205), while mortality reached 1.95% (4/204; 4/205), with all deaths occurring in male infants younger than 1 year.

Study Design

Type

Observational (n=8,426)

Multicenter

Structured PICO

Population

8,426 hospitalized children aged under 18 years who underwent enterovirus RNA testing over a 10-year period in Beijing, China.

Outcome

Clinical and epidemiological characteristics of children with EV infection

Enterovirus infection is an important cause of hospitalization in children, frequently presenting as viral encephalitis, myocardial injury, and pneumonia, particularly in infants and young children during summer and autumn.

Limitations

Single-center study conducted in Beijing, which may restrict the generalizability of the findings.
The analysis focused exclusively on hospitalized children, whereas the majority of EV infections are managed in outpatient settings.
The study did not conduct further laboratory typing of the EVs, as different EV types may present distinct clinical pathogenesis profiles.
single-center study conducted in Beijing
focused exclusively on hospitalized children
did not conduct further laboratory typing of the EVs

Discussion

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Implication

Warrants vigilance for severe manifestations in infants during summer and autumn; reinforces enterovirus as an important cause of hospitalization in young children.

Cite This Study

Li et al. (2026) conducted an observational in Enterovirus infection (n=8,426). Enterovirus infection was evaluated on Enterovirus detection rate. Among hospitalized children tested for enterovirus, the overall detection rate was 2.80%, with viral encephalitis identified as the most predominant disease manifestation (55.12%).

synapsesocial.com/papers/69af235f3eac3accde8a170e https://doi.org/10.1186/s12879-026-12988-2

View Full Paper

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Implication

Warrants vigilance for severe manifestations in infants during summer and autumn; reinforces enterovirus as an important cause of hospitalization in young children.

Clinical and epidemiological characteristics of hospitalized children with enterovirus infection: a retrospective study from 2016 to 2025 at Beijing children’s hospital

Key Points

Study Design

Structured PICO

Limitations

Discussion

Implication

Cite This Study

Clinical and epidemiological characteristics of hospitalized children with enterovirus infection: a retrospective study from 2016 to 2025 at Beijing children’s hospital

Key Points

Study Design

Structured PICO

Limitations

Discussion

Implication

Cite This Study

Also Consider

Also Consider