Human metapneumovirus in Jordan: prevalence and clinical symptoms in hospitalized pediatric patients and molecular virus characterization.

Respiratory viral infections account for significant morbidity and mortality especially in young children worldwide. Human metapneumovirus (hMPV) causes illnesses ranging from mild respiratory problems to bronchiolitis and severe pneumonia. From January to December 2007, 220 nasopharyngeal aspirates were collected from children younger ≤ 13 years old hospitalized with lower respiratory tract infection to detect hMPV by revese transcription-polymerase chain reaction and to clone and sequence the hMPV-positive samples.