Background: Human bocavirus (HBoV) was first reported in 2005. The worldwide presence of HBoV in children with acute respiratory tract infection (ARTI) has been confirmed. This study aimed to understand the prevalence and clinical features of HBoV in children with ARTI in Shanghai and explore the causative implication of HBoV in ARTI.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 349 hospitalized children with ARTI between November 2006 and January 2007. From these children, 351 nasopharyngeal aspirate samples were collected; 325 of the samples were obtained from those with community-acquired ARTI and 26 from those with hospital-acquired ARTI. All samples were routinely screened for seven common respiratory viruses by immunofluorescence and further tested for HBoV by polymerase chain reaction.

Results: HBoV was detected in 16 (4.6%) of the 351 samples, and it was the second most commonly detected virus after respiratory syncytial virus. Three (19%) HBoV-positive samples were dual infection with respiratory syncytial virus or parainfluenza virus type 3. Of the 325 children with community-acquired ARTI, HBoV was identified to be positive in 11 (3.4%), of whom 6 were diagnosed with pneumonia with patchy or interstitial infiltrates in the lung indicated by chest radiography, 3 with bronchitis, and 2 with bronchial asthma exacerbation with attendant lung infection. Out of the 26 children with nosocomial ARTI, 5 (19.2%) had bronchitis which was found to be HBoV positive without co-detection of other viruses. The HBoV-positive children were aged 1.7 months to 43 months and their mean age was 13.7 months. Sixteen (100%) children had cough, 11 (68.8%) had wheezing, and 10 (62.5%) had fever.

Conclusions: HBoV was circulating in Shanghai during the study period, and which was detected frequently in children with ARTI. HBoV was found to be associated with community-acquired ARTI and may play a pathogenic role in nosocomial ARTI.

Key words: acute respiratory tract infection; children; community-acquired infection; hospital-acquired infection; human bocavirus

World J Pediatr 2010;6(1):65-70