Abstract:Objective To investigate the relationship between the levels of serum microRNA-155 (miR-155), microRNA-23b-3p (miR-23b-3p), microRNA-16-5p (miR-16-5p) and the severity and prognosis of refractory mycoplasma pneumoniae pneumonia (RMPP) in children.Methods A total of 101 children with RMPP admitted to the hospital from June 2023 to December 2023 were selected as the study objects. Serum miR-155, miR-23b-3p, miR-16-5p and other data of the children were collected, and the children were divided into severe group and mild group according to the Diagnosis and Treatment Guide for Mycoplasma pneumoniae Pneumonia in Children (2023 edition). The children were followed up for 1 month from the start of treatment and were divided into good prognosis group and poor prognosis group according to the treatment effect. The levels of serum miR-155, miR-23b-3p and miR-16-5p in children with RMPP of different severity were analyzed, and the levels of serum miR-155, miR-23b-3p and miR-16-5p in the group with good prognosis and the group with poor prognosis were analyzed as well as the factors affecting the prognosis of children with RMPP. The prognostic value of serum miR-155, miR-23b-3p and miR-16-5p in children with RMPP was analyzed.Results The relative expression level of miR-155 in severe group was higher than that in mild group (P < 0.05), and the relative expression level of miR-23b-3p and miR-16-5p in severe group was lower than that in mild group (P < 0.05). The relative expression level of miR-155 in the poor prognosis group was higher than that in the good prognosis group (P < 0.05), and the relative expression level of miR-23b-3p and miR-16-5p was lower than that in the good prognosis group (P < 0.05). Logistic regression analysis showed that organ dysfunction score 2 [O^R = 5.129(95% CI: 2.111, 12.466)] and the relative expression level of miR-155 [O^R = 3.924(95% CI: 1.614, 9.535)], the relative expression level of miR-23b-3p [O^R = 3.850(95% CI: 1.584, 9.356)], and the relative expression level of miR-16-5p [O^R = 3.777(95% CI: 1.554, 9.179)] were the risk factors affecting prognosis of children with RMPP (P < 0.05). ROC curve analysis results showed that the sensitivity of serum miR-155, miR-23b-3p, miR-16-5p, and their combination to predict the prognosis of children with RMPP were 63.64% (95% CI: 0.408, 0.820), 72.73% (95% CI: 0.496, 0.884), 68.18% (95% CI: 0.451, 0.853), and 86.36% (95% CI: 0.640, 0.964). The specificity was 70.89% (95% CI: 0.594, 0.803), 78.48% (95% CI: 0.675, 0.866), 72.15% (95% CI: 0.608, 0.814), and 91.14% (95% CI: 0.820, 0.961). And AUC were 0.725 (95% CI: 0.622, 0.827), 0.718 (95% CI: 0.604, 0.831), 0.710 (95% CI: 0.591, 0.829), and 0.923 (95% CI: 0.866, 0.980).Conclusion Serum levels of miR-155, miR-23b-3p, and miR-16-5p are related to the severity and prognosis of RMPP children, and the combination of the three is effective in predicting the prognosis of RMPP children.