Objective To analyze changes in the detection characteristics of five respiratory pathogens among hospitalized children with pneumonia before and after the implementation of non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs).

Methods Clinical data were retrospectively collected from 18,573 hospitalized children with pneumonia aged ＜ 14 years who were admitted to the Children’s Hospital of the Second Hospital of Lanzhou University from January 2018 to December 2024. Based on the admission period, the patients were divided into the pre-NPI group, during-NPI group, and post-NPI group. Basic clinical characteristics and pathogen detection results were collected. The detection rates of Mycoplasma pneumoniae (MP), adenovirus (ADV), respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), influenza A virus (FluA), and influenza B virus (FluB) were compared, and the age and seasonal distributions of these pathogens were analyzed.

Results The detection rates of MP, ADV, RSV, FluA, and FluB in the post-NPI group were 57.73%, 5.54%, 7.33%, 2.59%, and 4.12%, respectively, all higher than those in the during-NPI group (all P ＜ 0.017). Except for FluA, the detection rates of the other pathogens were also higher than those in the pre-NPI group (all P ＜ 0.017). MP showed the highest detection rate in the school-age group (all P ＜ 0.017), RSV was predominant in the infant group, and FluA and FluB showed higher detection rates in winter (all P ＜ 0.017).

Conclusions After the lifting of NPIs, the detection rates of five respiratory pathogens among hospitalized children with pneumonia increased, and different pathogens exhibited distinct age- and season-related distribution patterns.