Study Design, Sites, and Subjects
From October 2017 to September 2019, a retrospective study was performed to identify hospitalized adults who had respiratory viruses detected from nasopharyngeal swab specimens using a multiplex polymerase chain reaction (mPCR) assay (described below). Study sites are located in Northern Manhattan, are part of the same academically affiliated hospital system, and include three hospitals: a ~750-bed tertiary care hospital caring for adults, a ~200-bed community hospital caring for adults, and a ~250-bed children’s hospital.
To estimate the population-based incidence of community-onset respiratory viruses associated with hospitalization, eligible patients were 18 years of age and older, resided in New York City, as defined by the zip code of their residence, were hospitalized for at least 24 hours, and had a respiratory virus detected within 3 calendar-days of admission. Patients were identified from the electronic health record (EHR). The Columbia University Irving Medical Center institutional review board approved this study with a waiver of informed consent.