Table 2.
Reported prevalence of microbial agents in AAE, according to data from the literature reviewed in this manuscript, sorted by geographical region
| Pathogen | Prevalence (%) in AAE (by region) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Children | Adults | |||||
| Americas | Europe | Australasia | Americas | Europe | Australasia | |
| Rhinovirus | 26–77 (57) | 17–82 (40) | 33–78 (42) | 29–36 (33) | 35 | 8–65 (20) |
| Enterovirus | 5 | 5–25 (9) | ? | ? | ? | 3.5 |
| Coronavirus | 0–3 (1.5) | 0–13 (2.5) | 1.5–2 (2) | 12–21 (17) | ? | 4 |
| Influenza virus | 0–20 (10) | 0–7 (3) | 1–12 (6.5) | 8–13 (11) | ? | 12–25 (23) |
| Parainfluenza virus | 2–6 (4) | 0–7 (4) | 7.5–8 (8) | 0–18 (9) | ? | 0 |
| Respiratory syncytial virus | 8–68 (40) | 1.5–61 (12) | 7.5–17 (16) | 3 | ? | 0–39 (2) |
| Metapneumovirus | 7.5 | 2–8.5 (4) | 1.5–8 (2.5) | 7 | ? | 0 |
| Adenovirus | 0–4 (2) | 0–5 (4) | 1.5 | 1 | ? | 2.5–3 (3) |
| Bocavirus | ? | 7.5–19 (12.5) | 11.5 | ? | ? | ? |
| Chlamydophila Pn | 4 | 0–45 (6.5) | 3–45 (24) | ? | 0–73 (18) | 9–18 (14) |
| Mycoplasma Pn | 0 | 1–50 (5) | 3 | ? | 0–4 (3.5) | 8 |
Percentage range and median value (in parentheses) are shown. Percentages referring to viral species are derived predominantly by PCR techniques that are applied in the majority of studies for viral detection. Bacterial (CP/MP) detection is usually by serology and/or PCR. ? = Insufficient data.
AAE, acute asthma exacerbation; CP, Chlamydophila pneumoniae; MP, Mycoplasma pneumoniae.