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PANDEMIC INFLUENZA A (H1N1) 2009 PRESENTING AS A MILD DISEASE IN CHILDREN IN A CROATIAN CLINICAL CENTRE
Svjetlana Grgić1, Elvira Čeljuska-Tošev1, Jadranka Nikolić1
11Department of Infectious Diseases, Mostar University Hospital, Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina; 2School of Medicine, University of Mostar, Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina; 3School of Medicine, University of Zagreb, Dr. Fran Mihaljević University Hospital for Infectious Diseases, Zagreb, Croatia.
Insights
Pandemic influenza A virus (H1N1) 2009 in children typically presented as a mild illness with few complications. Younger children, particularly boys, were most vulnerable, experiencing shorter hospital stays and lower mortality rates.
Area of Science:
- Virology
- Epidemiology
- Pediatrics
Background:
- Pandemic influenza A virus (H1N1) 2009 shares similarities with seasonal influenza but presents unique characteristics.
- Understanding the specific impact of pandemic influenza on pediatric populations is crucial for public health strategies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare the epidemiological and clinical features of pandemic influenza in children.
- To identify vulnerable pediatric groups and assess disease severity, complications, and risk factors.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of laboratory-confirmed pandemic influenza A virus (H1N1) 2009 cases in children hospitalized at a dedicated infectious diseases unit.
- Exhaustive analysis of incidence, clinical presentation, and complications over two influenza seasons.
Main Results:
- Moderate form of pandemic influenza predominated in hospitalized children, leading to shorter hospital stays and fewer complications.
- Otitis media was the least common complication observed.
- Children under 5 years, especially boys, were identified as a vulnerable group, experiencing mild disease with low mortality.
Conclusions:
- Pandemic influenza (H1N1) 2009 in children generally results in mild illness with low mortality and few complications.
- Younger children, particularly boys, are a vulnerable demographic.
- Commonly cited risk factors like asthma and obesity were less prevalent in affected children.
Abstract:
Pandemic influenza A virus (H1N1) 2009 causes a disease that is epidemiologically and clinically not significantly different from seasonal influenza, but there are differences. The aim of the study was to display and compare epidemiological and clinical characteristics of pandemic influenza in children. At Dr. Fran Mihaljević University Hospital for Infectious Diseases in Zagreb, in the first two seasons, the incidence of pandemic influenza virus A (H1N1) in particular was exhaustively analyzed only in patients with laboratory-confirmed pandemic influenza A virus (H1N1) 2009. In hospitalized children with documented influenza pandemic, moderate form of the disease predominated, which ultimately meant shorter hospital stay and fewer complications. Otitis media was the rarest complication in children in both seasons. In conclusion, children younger than 5 years, especially boys, were vulnerable groups for pandemic influenza, presenting as a mild disease with low mortality and few complications. Most of the affected children with influenza did not have important risk factors such as asthma and obesity, highlighted by other authors as significant risk factors.