Abstracts

Impact of COVID-19 on the epidemiology of respiratory viral infections and clinical characteristics of associated febrile seizures

Abstract number : 3.473
Submission category : 16. Epidemiology
Year : 2022
Submission ID : 2232941
Source : www.aesnet.org
Presentation date : 12/5/2022 12:00:00 PM
Published date : Nov 22, 2022, 05:28 AM

Authors :
Jee Min Kim, MD – Daejeon St.Mary's hospital; Jee Min Kim, M.S. – Pediatric neurology – Daejeon St.Mary's hospital

This is a Late Breaking abstract

Rationale: Viral infections of the upper respiratory tract are one of the most common causes of febrile seizures. During the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic, mitigation measures have contributed to changes in the epidemiology of respiratory viral infections. Therefore, we aimed to evaluate the impact of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic on the epidemiology of respiratory viral infections and clinical characteristics of febrile seizures.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of 988 episodes of febrile seizure (865 before the pandemic and 123 during the pandemic) between March 2016 and February 2022. Seizure characteristics and their outcomes, along with the distribution of identified respiratory viruses were compared before and during the pandemic.

Results: The overall incidence of febrile seizures decreased during the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic compared to that before the pandemic. A substantial reduction in the incidence of influenza virus infections was observed (p < 0.001) during the pandemic, while the incidence of rhinovirus infection was not significantly changed (p = 0.811). Interestingly, a significantly high incidence of parainfluenza virus (p = 0.001) infections was observed during the pandemic. No statistically significant between-group differences were observed in the clinical presentation and outcomes of febrile seizures before and during the pandemic.
Epidemiology