Respiratory syncytial virus infections from 1994 to 1999

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a common cause of acute respiratory infections in infants and young children. The most severe clinical manifestations (in the form of bronchiolitis) are reported in children aged up to 6 months. At the Virology Department, Croatian National Institute of Public Health, nasopharyngeal secretions obtained from 1,232 patients hospitalized in two Zagreb hospitals for acute respiratory infections were tested. The virus was detected by isolating it in a cell culture and/or by detecting it with monoclonal antibodies in the direct immunofluorescence assay. Most often, the virus demonstrated was RSV (43.8%; 540/1232). Other respiratory viruses (adeno, parainfluenza, influenza) were shown considerably less commonly (5.1%). Viral infection could not be demonstrated in 629 (51.1%) patients. RSV was demonstrated to be the most common cause of bronchiolitis (60.77%; 251/413). It was also proven to be the most common causative agent of infections in children aged 0-6 months (55.6%; 300/540). Bronchiolitis (63%; 190/300) and, less commonly, pneumonia (9.7%; 29/300) were the diagnoses linked with RSV in this age group. RSV was demonstrated in 21% (63/300) of the children diagnosed with upper respiratory tract infection. We showed the presence of the majority of RSV infections in the winter months, i.e. between November and March.
Keywords: RESPIRATORY SYNCYTIAL VIRUS INFECTIONS – epidemiology; CROATIA - epidemiology
Category: Original scientific paper
Volume: Vol. 49, No 1, january - march 2005
Authors: V. Draženović, G. Mlinarić-Galinović, A. Lukić-Grlić, A. Barišin, A. Baće, V. Hrešić-Kršulović, R. Sim, B.Berberović, E. Berberović
Reference work:
DOI: