Pre-k, Elementary Students More Likely to Have Viruses Than Older Students: Study

A study, “Respiratory Virus Detection and Acute Respiratory Illness Rates in Students and Staff in Schools,” followed students in a large Kansas City, MO., public school district and found the highest rates of illness among pre-kindergarten and elementary students as compared with older students. The study, published in the October 2025 Pediatrics (published online Sept. 15) enrolled 816 students and staff at a pre-K-12th grade school district to determine the incidence of respiratory virus detections and acute respiratory illness. Students and staff self-collected nasal swabs and reported respiratory symptoms from November 2022-May 2023. Participants included 590 (72.3%) students and 226 (27.7%) staff, providing 5,981 specimens and 5,198 symptom surveys. Researchers found 698 participants (85.5%) had one or more viruses detected over a median 24.5-week period, and 656 (80.4%) had one or more respiratory illnesses. Pre-K and elementary students had the highest virus detection rates, and pre-K students and school staff had the highest rates of acute respiratory illness. The authors state that their findings may provide useful data when determining effectiveness of infection prevention strategies in schools.

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The American Academy of Pediatrics is an organization of 67,000 primary care pediatricians, pediatric medical subspecialists and pediatric surgical specialists dedicated to the health, safety and well-being of infants, children, adolescents and young adults.