This story is from April 21, 2019

Cured of adenoviruses, kids down with lung disease

Cured of adenoviruses, kids down with lung disease
Representative image
KOLKATA: After a spurt, adenovirus cases in the city have come down over the past couple of weeks but doctors are now worried about a number of children, after being treated in hospitals and discharged, returning with a lung disease that could haunt some of them into their adulthood.
1

Hospitals have recorded a number of cases, in which children, who had been cured of adenovirus, being brought back with bronchiolitis obliterans (BO) 10 to 15 days after being discharged.
BO is an uncommon but severe form of chronic obstructive lung disease in children. “We have got about 10 children returning with clinical features of BO. They had recently been discharged after treatment for adenovirus,” said Dr Prabhas Prasun Giri, who heads the PICU at Institute of Child Health (ICH).
Bronchiolitis obliterans is a condition in which the smallest airways of the lungs are obstructed due to inflammation. Apart of adenovirus, and other respiratory viruses, inhaling of toxic fumes, connective tissue disorder, complications following a bone marrow transplant or heart-lung transplant can trigger BO. There is no medication to cure BO. Anti-biotics, immune-suppresants and steroids used in the treatment can minimize the symptoms.
Adenovirus mostly affects young children, the infection being more severe in those aged less than a year. ICH being a children-specific facility, the Park Circus hospital recorded the highest number of adenovirus cases this year. “Between January and March, we got about 90 cases of adenovirus of which about a third needed ICU facilities. Among those who were treated in the ICU, half required ventilation support,” added Giri. According to doctors, the number of adenovirus cases was not only unusually high this year, but its severity was also worse than before. Hence, the spike in bronchiolitis obliterans cases, they said, adding hospitals with paediatric care were now gearing up to tackle more BO cases in the days ahead.

“This year has been the worst in terms of severity and number of adenovirus cases. Those who have been infected seriously are not only vulnerable to BO but also to other common viruses, as their lungs’ airway is compromised. So far, we have got two children coming back with BO,” said Dr Soumen Meur, paediatric intensivist at AMRI Hospitals Mukundapur.
“Given the high number of adenovirus cases, it is no surprising that some are coming back with BO. In most cases, BO will go away in course of time and treatment. But in some, the disease may continue to haunt for a little longer, while in a handful of cases, it may lead to a progressive lung disease and cause fatality,” said Dr Agnisekhar Saha, paediatric intensivist at Apollo Gleneagles Hospitals.
End of Article
FOLLOW US ON SOCIAL MEDIA