Profiles of viral pathogens from individuals with acute respiratory tract infections in northern Tanzania.

Publication date: Sep 01, 2025

Acute respiratory tract infections (ARTIs) may be misdiagnosed due to bottlenecks in conventional diagnostics. The primary objective was to identify viral pathogens using reverse transcription real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Cross-sectional study was conducted between 2022 and 2024 at Tanzanian referral hospitals. Viral RNA was extracted from oral-nasopharyngeal swabs and amplified using multiplex and singleplex RT-PCR. Cycle threshold values ≤40 and ≤35 were considered positive for multiplex and singleplex RT-PCR, respectively. We recruited 183 participants with median age of 52 years (interquartile range, 32-69). Of these, 119 (65%) were females. The majority (167 of 183, 91. 3%) had no COVID-19 vaccination. Over one-third (67 of 183, 36. 61%) were PCR-positive for viral pathogens. Seven viral pathogens were identified, and the more prevalent were influenza A virus (Flu A) (n = 27), SARS-CoV-2 (n = 10), and respiratory syncytial virus (n = 7). The most common co-infecting viruses were FluA + respiratory syncytial virus (n = 6), Flu A + influenza B virus + SARS-CoV-2 (n = 4), and SARS-CoV-2 + Flu A (n = 3). Elderly people (aged >65 years) were commonly infected with Flu A (n = 9) and SARS-CoV-2 (n = 5). Viral pathogens are common in people with ARTIs. This study emphasizes consideration of RT-PCR in addition to conventional diagnostic approaches for identifying viral pathogens in patients with ARTIs.

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