Respiratory virus prevalence among healthcare university students in Ecuador: a multicenter cross-sectional study
Abstract
BackgroundRespiratory viruses remain a major global public health concern and are among the leading causes of acute respiratory infections worldwide. University students, particularly healthcare students, represent a potentially important group for viral circulation because of frequent social interaction and exposure to clinical environments. Evidence regarding respiratory virus circulation in university populations from Latin America, especially Ecuador, remains limited.ObjectiveTo estimate the prevalence of respiratory viruses among 438 healthcare university students in three Ecuadorian cities and to describe the proportion of infections detected in students without symptoms.MethodsA multicenter cross-sectional study based on a convenience sample was conducted between January 4 and February 3, 2026, among healthcare university students from universities located in Quito, Guayaquil, and Cuenca, Ecuador. Nasopharyngeal samples were analyzed on site using a combo rapid antigen test for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), Influenza A, Influenza B, and Adenovirus. Sociodemographic and epidemiological variables were recorded. Exact tests and exploratory Firth penalized logistic regression were used to explore factors associated with positivity.ResultsFourteen participants tested positive for at least one respiratory virus, corresponding to an overall prevalence of 3.2% (95% CI: 1.8–5.3). Influenza A virus and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) were the most frequent single detections (n = 4 each), followed by adenovirus (n = 3). Three coinfections were identified. Eight of the 14 positive participants (57.1%) were asymptomatic, whereas six (42.9%) reported respiratory symptoms. A significant association was identified between symptom presence and viral detection (p < 0.001).ConclusionRespiratory virus detection among healthcare university students in Ecuador was low, and more than half of the positive students reported no symptoms, suggesting that these viruses may circulate unnoticed within university environments. Because rapid antigen tests have limited sensitivity and do not directly measure infectivity, the true prevalence is probably higher, and studies with molecular confirmation, larger samples, and longer sampling periods are needed. Rapid antigen tests were operationally feasible as point-of-care tools for on-site screening in academic environments.
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BibTeX
@article{bruno2026respiratory,
title = {{Respiratory virus prevalence among healthcare university students in Ecuador: a multicenter cross-sectional study}},
author = {Alfredo Bruno and Domenica de Mora and Maritza Olmedo and Jimmy Garcés and Denisses Portugal and William Rosas and Ana Maria Tito Alvarez and Wilson David Dávila-Aldas and Mauricio Salas Rueda and Ismar Rivera Olivero and Sebastian Rodriguez Pazmino and Darwin Paredes-Nunez and Miguel Angel Garcia-Bereguiain},
journal = {Frontiers in Public Health},
year = {2026},
month = nov,
doi = {10.3389/fpubh.2026.1969113},
url = {https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2026.1969113},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Respiratory virus prevalence among healthcare university students in Ecuador: a multicenter cross-sectional study
AU - Alfredo Bruno
AU - Domenica de Mora
AU - Maritza Olmedo
AU - Jimmy Garcés
AU - Denisses Portugal
AU - William Rosas
AU - Ana Maria Tito Alvarez
AU - Wilson David Dávila-Aldas
AU - Mauricio Salas Rueda
AU - Ismar Rivera Olivero
AU - Sebastian Rodriguez Pazmino
AU - Darwin Paredes-Nunez
AU - Miguel Angel Garcia-Bereguiain
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/11/04
JO - Frontiers in Public Health
DO - 10.3389/fpubh.2026.1969113
UR - https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpubh.2026.1969113
AB - BackgroundRespiratory viruses remain a major global public health concern and are among the leading causes of acute respiratory infections worldwide. University students, particularly healthcare students, represent a potentially important group for viral circulation because of frequent social interaction and exposure to clinical environments. Evidence regarding respiratory virus circulation in university populations from Latin America, especially Ecuador, remains limited.ObjectiveTo estimate the prevalence of respiratory viruses among 438 healthcare university students in three Ecuadorian cities and to describe the proportion of infections detected in students without symptoms.MethodsA multicenter cross-sectional study based on a convenience sample was conducted between January 4 and February 3, 2026, among healthcare university students from universities located in Quito, Guayaquil, and Cuenca, Ecuador. Nasopharyngeal samples were analyzed on site using a combo rapid antigen test for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), Influenza A, Influenza B, and Adenovirus. Sociodemographic and epidemiological variables were recorded. Exact tests and exploratory Firth penalized logistic regression were used to explore factors associated with positivity.ResultsFourteen participants tested positive for at least one respiratory virus, corresponding to an overall prevalence of 3.2% (95% CI: 1.8–5.3). Influenza A virus and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) were the most frequent single detections (n = 4 each), followed by adenovirus (n = 3). Three coinfections were identified. Eight of the 14 positive participants (57.1%) were asymptomatic, whereas six (42.9%) reported respiratory symptoms. A significant association was identified between symptom presence and viral detection (p < 0.001).ConclusionRespiratory virus detection among healthcare university students in Ecuador was low, and more than half of the positive students reported no symptoms, suggesting that these viruses may circulate unnoticed within university environments. Because rapid antigen tests have limited sensitivity and do not directly measure infectivity, the true prevalence is probably higher, and studies with molecular confirmation, larger samples, and longer sampling periods are needed. Rapid antigen tests were operationally feasible as point-of-care tools for on-site screening in academic environments.
SN - 2296-2565
ER -