Rhinovirus and acute bronchiolitis in young infants

• Published in: Jornal de pediatria 2005-09, Vol.81 (5), p.417-420
• Main Authors: Pitrez, Paulo M C, Stein, Renato T, Stuermer, Larissa, Macedo, Izolete S, Schmitt, Virgínia M, Jones, Marcus H, Arruda, Eurico
• Format: Article
• Language: eng ; por
• Subjects: Acute Disease; Brazil - epidemiology; Bronchiolitis - virology; Female; Humans; Infant; Male; Patients; Picornaviridae Infections - epidemiology; Prevalence; Prospective Studies; Respiratory Sounds; Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infections - epidemiology; Respiratory Syncytial Virus, Human - isolation & purification; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; Rhinovirus - isolation & purification; Statistics, Nonparametric
• ISSN: 0021-7557
• DOI: 10.2223/JPED.1394

To determine the prevalence of rhinovirus infection in hospitalized young infants with acute bronchiolitis. Hospitalized children with acute bronchiolitis admitted to the Hospital São Lucas/PUCRS between May and September 2002 were selected prospectively. Nasopharyngeal samples were assayed for respiratory syncytial virus, parainfluenza, influenza and adenovirus by immunofluorescence. For rhinovirus test a reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction for picornavirus was used, followed by hybridization with rhinovirus specific probes. Forty-five patients were selected for the study. The median age of the subjects studied was 2 months. Positive samples for respiratory viruses were found in 35/45 (77.8%) subjects and 7/35 (20%) patients had dual infection. Respiratory syncytial virus was detected in 33/35 (94%) cases. Rhinovirus was detected in 6/35 patients (17%). Rhinovirus was the second most common agent detected in nasal secretions from young infants hospitalized with acute bronchiolitis.