COVID-19 Pandemic Alters Infectious Disease Patterns Among Children in Japan

Strategic Insights -

New research in the Post-COVID-19 era indicates that infectious disease patterns among children in Japan have changed significantly since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. According to a study published in the Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal, the COVID-19 pandemic led to a reduction in respiratory infectious diseases and infectious gastroenteritis in 2020, but by 2022, the incidence of these diseases began to increase again. The study, conducted by researchers from Hokkaido Medical Center for Child Health and Rehabilitation, analyzed data from 3417 patients hospitalized with infectious diseases in 18 hospitals in Japan from July 2019 to June 2022.

Key Takeaways:

  • The COVID-19 pandemic caused a drastic decrease in respiratory syncytial virus hospitalizations from April 2020 to March 2021.
  • An unexpected out-of-season re-emergence of respiratory syncytial virus was observed in August 2021, particularly among older children aged 3-6 years.
  • A large epidemic of delayed norovirus gastroenteritis was observed in April 2021, highlighting the ineffectiveness of nonpharmaceutical interventions for COVID-19 against norovirus.
  • The incidence patterns of various infectious diseases in Japan have changed markedly since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic to the present.
  • The epidemic pattern in the post-COVID-19 era is unpredictable and requires continued careful surveillance.

Statistics:

  • 3417 patients were hospitalized with infectious diseases in 18 hospitals in Japan from July 2019 to June 2022.
  • Respiratory syncytial virus decreased drastically from 2020 to 2021, with only 50 patients hospitalized per week from April 2020 to March 2021.
  • The number of patients hospitalized with norovirus gastroenteritis increased significantly in April 2021, with 23 patients per week.
  • The incidence of respiratory syncytial virus re-emerged in August 2021, with 50 patients per week, particularly among older children aged 3-6 years.

Sources:

  • Togashi, A., Fukuda, Y., Hirakawa, S., Yamamoto, M., Fukumura, S., Nawa, T., ... & Nishino, K. (2023). Changing Patterns of Infectious Diseases Among Hospitalized Children in Hokkaido, Japan, in the Post-COVID-19 Era, July 2019 to June 2022. Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal, 2023.
  • Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal (2023). Volume 2023. Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.