TOPLINE:
Post-COVID Mycoplasma pneumoniae infections in children were associated with increased frequencies of obstructive diseases and pleural effusions but no change in severe outcomes vs the pre-COVID period.
METHODOLOGY:
Researchers conducted a retrospective, comparative cohort study in Zurich to assess evolving features of M pneumoniae infections in children since its delayed re-emergence after COVID non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs).
The study included 321 children (age range, 0 to < 18 years) with polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-detected M pneumoniae infection: 83 were included in the pre-NPI period (April 2015 to March 2020), two in the NPI period (April 2020 to March 2022), and 236 in the post-NPI period (April 2022 to March 2025).
Clinical features were compared