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.