OBJECTIVE: to determine the frequency, complications and seasonality at which respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection of the lower respiratory tract causes hospitalization in infants of age 1 year or less in 6 cities of Colombia. METHODS: one-year prospective multicentric observational study that included 717 patients presenting to the emergency department with respiratory symptoms in 6 cities of Colombia. Hospitalized children were tested for RSV with an immunofluorescence rapid test in nasopharyngeal secretions. Descriptive and statistical analyses of the population were conducted. RESULTS: the study population included 717 patients with a mean age of 3.6 months (SD 3.25), 4:3 male: female ratio and a positive RSV LRTI prevalence of 30.0% (216 infants/City, range 26.0 - 49.0%). Risk factors for RSV LRTI were found in 8.2% of the population, of which 28.8% were RSV positive. RSV positive and negative groups were compared using a two-tailed t test with 95.0%CI, p < 0.05. No statistically significant differences were found. All cities presented specific year trimesters in the occurrence of RSV LRTI. CONCLUSIONS: the RSV caused 1 in 3 LRTI hospitalizations in the population, with an incidence of 30.0%. This confirms a continuous circulation of RSV in Colombia varying by geographic location.
Respiratory syncytial virus; Lower respiratory tract infection; Hospitalization
