• Anna Wieching, Jasmin Benser, Christina Kohlhauser-Vollmuth, Benedikt Weissbrich, Andrea Streng, and Johannes G Liese.
• University Children's Hospital, Pediatric Infectiology and Immunology, Julius-Maximilians-University of Wuerzburg, Josef-Schneider-Str, 2, 97080, Wuerzburg, Germany.
• BMC Res Notes. 2012 Jan 1;5:304.

BackgroundThe 2009 pandemic influenza A (H1N1) (PIA) virus infected large parts of the pediatric population with a wide clinical spectrum and an initially unknown complication rate. The aims of our study were to define clinical characteristics and outcome of pandemic influenza A (H1N1) 2009-associated hospitalizations (PIAH) in children <18 years of age. All hospitalized cases of children <18 years of age with laboratory-confirmed pandemic influenza A (H1N1) 2009 in the region of Wuerzburg (Northern Bavaria, Germany) between July 2009 and March 2010 were identified. For these children a medical chart review was performed to determine their clinical characteristics and complications.ResultsBetween July 2009 and March 2010, 94 PIAH (62% males) occurred in children <18 years of age, with a median age of 7 years (IQR: 3-12 years). Underlying diseases and predisposing factors were documented in 40 (43%) children; obesity (n = 12, 30%), asthma (n = 10, 25%) and neurologic disorders (n = 8, 20%) were most frequently reported. Sixteen (17%) children received oxygen supplementation; three (3%) children required mechanical ventilation. Six (6%) children were admitted to an intensive care unit, four of them with underlying chronic diseases.ConclusionsMost PIAH demonstrated a benign course of disease. However, six children (6%) needed treatment at an intensive care unit for severe complications.

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