Respiratory picornavirus infections in Korean children with lower respiratory tract infections

Recently, human rhinoviruses (RVs) and enteroviruses have been suggested as important etiological agents in young children with lower respiratory tract infections (LRTIs). We investigated the role of respiratory picornaviruses in hospitalized children with LRTI. A total of 233 nasopharyngeal samples were collected from hospitalized children with LRTIs from July 2004 to January 2006. All specimens were tested for the presence of human respiratory syncytial virus (hRSV), influenza virus A, influenza B, parainfluenzavirus, and adenovirus using direct immunofluorescent assay, and for human metapneumovirus (HMPV) by RT-PCR. Detection of RV was performed in nasopharyngeal samples by a RT-PCR assay that incorporated a BglI restriction enzyme digestion of the picornavirus RT-PCR amplicon, and detection of enterovirus was accomplished by hemi-nested RT-PCR using specific primers. Viral agents were detected in 70.4% (164/233) of the study population. The most frequently detected viruses were RV (64/233, 27.4%), hRSV (48/233, 20.6%), and enterovirus (43/233, 18.4%). Picornaviruses were detected as the sole viral agents in 27.0% (63/233) of children, whereas mixed viral infection was detected in 12.0%. These results suggest that picronavirus infection is an important etiological cause of LRTIs in Korean children.