Epidemiology and Disease Burden of Hospitalized Children With Viral Central Nervous System Infections in China, 2016 to 2020

Qi Li; Ran Wang; Hui Xu; Linlin Zhang; Yiliang Fu; Jiao Tian; Mengjia Liu; Guoshuang Feng; Yueping Zeng; Xiangpeng Chen; Zhengde Xie

doi:10.1016/j.pediatrneurol.2022.09.003

Epidemiology and Disease Burden of Hospitalized Children With Viral Central Nervous System Infections in China, 2016 to 2020

Pediatr Neurol. 2023 Jan:138:38-44. doi: 10.1016/j.pediatrneurol.2022.09.003. Epub 2022 Oct 14.

Authors

Qi Li¹, Ran Wang¹, Hui Xu², Linlin Zhang¹, Yiliang Fu¹, Jiao Tian¹, Mengjia Liu¹, Guoshuang Feng², Yueping Zeng³, Xiangpeng Chen⁴, Zhengde Xie⁵

Affiliations

¹ Beijing Key Laboratory of Pediatric Respiratory Infectious Diseases, Key Laboratory of Major Diseases in Children, Ministry of Education, National Clinical Research Center for Respiratory Diseases, Laboratory of Infection and Virology, Beijing Pediatric Research Institute, Beijing Children's Hospital, Capital Medical University, National Center for Children's Health, Beijing, China; Research Unit of Critical Infection in Children, 2019RU016, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing, China.
² Big Data Center, Beijing Children's Hospital, Capital Medical University, National Center for Children's Health, Beijing, China.
³ Medical Record Management Office, Beijing Children's Hospital, Capital Medical University, National Center for Children's Health, Beijing, China.
⁴ Beijing Key Laboratory of Pediatric Respiratory Infectious Diseases, Key Laboratory of Major Diseases in Children, Ministry of Education, National Clinical Research Center for Respiratory Diseases, Laboratory of Infection and Virology, Beijing Pediatric Research Institute, Beijing Children's Hospital, Capital Medical University, National Center for Children's Health, Beijing, China; Research Unit of Critical Infection in Children, 2019RU016, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing, China. Electronic address: chenxp1111@163.com.
⁵ Beijing Key Laboratory of Pediatric Respiratory Infectious Diseases, Key Laboratory of Major Diseases in Children, Ministry of Education, National Clinical Research Center for Respiratory Diseases, Laboratory of Infection and Virology, Beijing Pediatric Research Institute, Beijing Children's Hospital, Capital Medical University, National Center for Children's Health, Beijing, China; Research Unit of Critical Infection in Children, 2019RU016, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing, China. Electronic address: xiezhendge@bch.com.cn.

PMID: 36356470
DOI: 10.1016/j.pediatrneurol.2022.09.003

Abstract

Background: Viral central nervous system (CNS) infections seriously threaten the life and health of children, with a high mortality and severe sequelae in China and globally. Surveillance of viral CNS infections in children is important, especially in hospitalized children, to facilitate disease evaluation.

Methods: In this study, we collected the data on the discharged Face Sheet of Medical Records from database from 2016 to 2020 and analyzed the epidemiologic characteristics and disease burden of hospitalized children (≤18 years old) with viral CNS infections in China. We classified the discharge diagnosis of viral CNS infection as viral encephalitis (VE), viral meningitis (VM), viral meningoencephalitis (VME), viral encephalomyelitis (VEM), and viral meningomyelitis (VMM).

Results: A total of 42,641 cases of viral CNS infections were included in the database, consisting of 39,279 cases with VE (92.47%), 2011 cases with VM (4.73%), 1189 cases with VME (2.80%), 118 cases with VEM (0.28%), and 44 cases with VMM (0.10%). The number of hospitalized patients with viral CNS infections accounted for 0.74% (42,641 of 5,790,910) of all hospitalized cases. The onset of viral CNS infections presented seasonal characteristic, with peaks in June to July and December to January. Seizures are the most frequent complication of this disorder. Median length of stay and inpatient expenditures for patients with viral CNS infections were 9 days and 1144.36 USD. Causative viruses were identified in 4.33% (1848 of 42,641) of patients.

Conclusions: This study will help understand the clinical epidemiology and disease burden of hospitalized children with viral CNS infections in China.

Keywords: Children; Epidemiology; Hospitalization; Viral central nervous system infections.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Adolescent
Central Nervous System Infections* / complications
Central Nervous System Infections* / epidemiology
Central Nervous System Viral Diseases* / epidemiology
Central Nervous System Viral Diseases* / etiology
Child
Child, Hospitalized
China / epidemiology
Cost of Illness
Encephalitis, Viral* / complications
Encephalitis, Viral* / epidemiology
Humans
Meningitis, Viral* / epidemiology
Meningoencephalitis*
Myelitis* / complications