• Luis Moral, Nuria Marco, Teresa Toral, María Jesús Fuentes, Laura Fuentes, and Lucía Lillo.
• Department of Pediatrics, Hospital General Universitario, Alicante, Spain. lmoralg@gmail.com
• Enferm. Infecc. Microbiol. Clin. 2011 Aug 1;29(7):497-501.

IntroductionMost of the published studies on patients admitted with 2009 pandemic influenza are not population based. We have compiled the clinical information regarding all children admitted with 2009 pandemic influenza A (H1N1) infection during the season 2009-2010 in our defined population, in order to have an unbiased view of the most severe side of the clinical spectrum of the infection and to quantify its burden.MethodsChildren <15 years-old admitted to any of 3 hospitals in South-East Spain with 2009 pandemic influenza A (H1N1) detected by means of reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction. High quality data were extracted from clinical records specially designed for the pandemic.ResultsEighty two children fulfilled the inclusion criteria. The hospitalization rate was 68 per 100,000 children <15 years-old; in those <5 years-old the rate was of 131 and in <1 year-old, 234 per 100,000. An estimated 0.7% of the children who suffered from pandemic influenza were admitted (1.7% in <5 years-old). Intensive care was required for 5% of the hospitalized patients living in the study area. Mortality was roughly estimated about 1 per 100,000 children <15 years-old and was associated with the presence of very severe comorbidities or co-infections. Only 20% of the admitted children were ≥ 5 years-old and without risk factors. The disease followed a generally benign course despite the modest use of oseltamivir (49% of the patients).ConclusionsClinical and epidemiological data are very similar to those observed in other places and in interpandemic seasons with a high influenza activity.Copyright © 2010 Elsevier España, S.L. All rights reserved.

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