Original article
English
Omar Salhuba ¹, Luis Cuevs ², Tony Hart ², Bernard Brabin ²
1-Department of Respiratory, Tripoli Medical Centre, 2- Child Health, Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine, Liverpool, UK
JMJ 2008,Vol.8, No.3: 207-209
Abstract
Study area: A cross-sectional prevalence study was undertaken between October 2002 and February 2004 in Tripoli Medical Centre (TMC), Tripoli, Libya. Objective: to determine the prevalence of Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) and Human Metapneumovirus (HMPV). Study design: 122 children were screened in the cross-sectional survey to determine the prevalence of RSV and HMPV. Methods: Data was analysed in SPSS and EPI-INFO 2000 using descriptive statistics for univariate analysis. Results: The viral prevalence study found a low prevalence of both RSV (7%) and HMPV (1%) and an absence of co-infection with RSV and HMPV in these asthmatic children. Most of the ten children with viral infections were under 2 years (P=0.05). Mean (SD) weight for age and height for age were significantly higher in children with viruses identified (P=0.015 and P=0.003 respectively). Conclusion: Asthmatic children with respiratory viral antigens identified had significantly better anthropometric status.
Keywords: HMPV (Human Metapneumovirus), RSV (Respiratory Syncytial Virus), Asthma
Link/DOI: http://www.jmj.org.ly/PDF/autumn2008/207.pdf