Common seasonal respiratory viral infections in children before and during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic

Objectives To describe the incidence of seasonal respiratory viral infections (s-RVIs) before and during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic and to compare virus-specific patient outcomes in pediatric patients. Design A retrospective cross-sectional study including patient admissions to the Children's National Hospital between October 1, 2015, and December 31, 2020. Results Among 12,451 patient admissions between March 15 and December 31, 2020 (cohort 1), 8,162 (66%) were tested for severe acute respiratory coronavirus virus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), and 249 (2.0%) were positive. Among 10,986 patient admissions between April 1 and December 31, 2020 (cohort 2), 844 (8%) were tested for s-RV upon admission and 160 were positive. Thus, 1.5% of patient admissions were associated with laboratory-confirmed s-RVIs. Among the 49,901 patient admissions during a viral season between October 1, 2015, and March 31, 2020 (cohort 3), 7,539 (15%) were tested for s-RV upon admission and 4,531 were positive; thus, 9.0% of patient admissions were associated with laboratory-confirmed s-RVIs. hHRV/rENT was the most detected virus, but the detection rate decreased substantially (31% vs 18%; P .05) or death at discharge (0.8% vs 0.6% vs 0.5%; P > .05). Conclusions Compared to COVID-19, s-RVI cases were associated with a higher proportion of inpatient admissions but were similar in ICU admission and death rates in hospitalized pediatric patients. Public health interventions for preventing COVID-19 were highly effective in preventing pediatrics s-RVIs.