ArticleBMC pediatrics2026
Comparison of human metapneumovirus and respiratory syncytial virus in children with acute lower respiratory infections in Wenzhou, China from 2021 to 2022: a retrospective study.
Article in BMC pediatrics, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
9 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveTo compare the clinical characteristics of human metapneumovirus (HMPV) and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infections in children hospitalized with acute lower respiratory infections (ALRI).
methodsChildren hospitalized with ALRI in Wenzhou, China from 2021 to 2022 were detected for HMPV and RSV in sputum or nasopharyngeal secretions by multiplex reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). A comparative analysis of demographic, clinical, laboratory, and radiological characteristics was performed retrospectively for patients in the HMPV and RSV groups.
resultsA total of 15,772 hospitalized children were screened and tested by multiplex RT-PCR. 889 (5.6%) were HMPV-positive and 2,196 (13.9%) were RSV-positive. Compared with the RSV-associated ALRI group, the HMPV-associated ALRI group exhibited a lower proportion of males (55.2% vs. 62.2%, P = 0.002), an older median age (2.5 years vs. 1.6 years, P < 0.001), and a higher proportion of underlying medical conditions (9.9% vs. 6.0%, P = 0.001). The HMPV group exhibited significantly longer duration of fever (P < 0.001) and higher peak temperature (P < 0.001) compared with the RSV group. In contrast, the RSV group were more likely to present with respiratory distress, including retractions (P = 0.006) and nodding breathing (P = 0.032). Levels of C-reactive protein (14.18 mg/L vs. 7.80 mg/L, P < 0.001), procalcitonin (P = 0.001), lactate dehydrogenase (422.0 U/L vs. 381.0 U/L, P < 0.001), and neutrophil percentage (60.6% vs. 56.5%, P = 0.007) in the HMPV group were significantly higher than the RSV group. Children with HMPV-associated ALRI were more likely to exhibit patchy or linear opacities (71.5% vs. 65.1%, P = 0.016), pulmonary consolidation (4.1% vs. 2.1%, P = 0.047), and atelectasis (1.8% vs. 0%, P = 0.001) compared with those in the RSV group.
conclusionIn hospitalized children, those with HMPV infection may be more common in older children and more likely to have underlying medical conditions than those with RSV infection. Children with HMPV-associated ALRI may present with prolonged, higher-grade fever, more pronounced systemic inflammatory responses, and an increased risk of developing pulmonary consolidation and atelectasis.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.