TITLE:
The Prevalence and Clinical Manifestations of Co-Infection in Pediatric Infectious Mononucleosis: A Single-Centered, Retrospective Study
AUTHORS:
Abdishakur Abdukadir Muse, Zakaria Ahmed Mohamed, Pu Yang, Lihong Liao, Bibek Dhar Shrestha, Agness Nicholaus Kanusya, Paul Mwale, Youping Deng, Dongchi Zhao
KEYWORDS:
Prevalence, Mononucleosis, Coinfection, Children, Epstein-Barr virus, Features
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Pediatrics,
Vol.14 No.3,
April
11,
2024
ABSTRACT: <b>Background:</b><b> </b>Recent studies indicate that the incidence of infectious mononucleosis (IM) has increased in China. Furthermore, it has been shown that children diagnosed with IM are prone to acquiring other pathogens. However, there is limited research on the prevalence of these co-infections in children with IM. Thus, we conducted this study to determine the prevalence of coinfections and common pathogens, as well as to compare clinical manifestations in children with and without coinfections. <b>Methods:</b><b> </b>This retrospective observational study was conducted at the Department of Pediatrics Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, China, with data from January 2018 to January 2023. Data, including demographics, symptoms, lab results, and complications, were collected from the hospital’s electronic database and analyzed. The statistical analysis included descriptive statistics, independent samples t-tests and Mann-Whitney tests to compare the means of continuous variables. Statistical significance was determined by p-values less than 0.05. <b>Results:</b><b> </b>The study involved 216 participants diagnosed with IM, predominantly males (61.6%) aged 0 - 4 years (50.9%). Coinfection was detected in 39.8% of children, with multiple pathogens present in 33.72% of these cases. Among coinfection cases, 40% occurred in children under 5 years old, and females made up 54.2% of these cases. Mycoplasma pneumoniae (MP) was the most prevalent pathogen, accounting for 18.1% of cases. Influenza B (IFB) and Influenza A (IFA) viruses were found in 16.7% and 13.9% of participants, respectively, indicating a notable occurrence of respiratory pathogen coinfections. Male gender, fever, tonsillopharyngitis, lower HGB levels, higher ESR, CRP, and AST levels were correlated with coinfections. <b>Conclusion:</b><b> </b>In summary, the study revealed a high prevalence of coinfections among children diagnosed with IM, particularly involving Mycoplasma pneumoniae and influenza viruses. These coinfections were notably common in children under 5 years old and were more frequent among females. Clinical manifestations such as fever and tonsillopharyngitis, along with specific laboratory findings including lower hemoglobin levels, elevated ESR, CRP and AST levels, were found to be correlated with coinfections.