Severity of Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infection Is Related to Virus Strain

• Published in: The Journal of infectious diseases Vol. 175; no. 4; pp. 814 - 820
• Main Authors: Walsh, Edward E., McConnochie, Kenneth M., Long, Christine E., Hall, Caroline B.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Chicago, IL The University of Chicago Press 01-04-1997; University of Chicago Press; Oxford University Press
• Subjects: Biological and medical sciences; Diseases; Epidemiology; Female; Hospitalization; Human respiratory syncytial virus; Human viral diseases; Humans; Infant; Infant, Newborn; Infants; Infections; Infectious diseases; Major Articles; Male; Medical sciences; Predisposing factors; Respiratory syncytial virus; Respiratory syncytial virus infections; Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infections - virology; Respiratory syncytial viruses; Respiratory Syncytial Viruses - classification; Severity of illness indices; Viral diseases; Viral diseases of the respiratory system and ent viral diseases; Viruses; Human; Human respiratory syncytial virus; Lung disease; Pneumonia; Respiratory disease; Evaluation scale; Pathogenesis; Infant; Identification; Paramyxoviridae; Bronchiolitis; Infection; Virus; Microbiological investigation; Viral disease; Risk factor; Pathogen strain; Bronchus disease; Severity score; Pneumovirus
• ISSN: 0022-1899; 1537-6613
• DOI: 10.1086/513976

The relationship between respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) strain and disease severity was assessed in 265 hospitalized infants over a 3-year period (1988–1991). A severity index of clinical and physiologic parameters was used to grade illness severity. Multivariate analysis of 134 infants infected with group A RSV strains and 131 infants infected with group B strains indicated that prematurity, underlying medical conditions, group A RSV infection, and age ⩽3 months were independently associated with severe disease. Odds ratios for severe disease for these risk factors were 1.83, 2.84, 3.26, and 4.39, respectively. Among infants without underlying medical conditions, group B RSV infection rarely required ventilatory support, in contrast to group A infections (1/90 vs. 13/107; P < .006), and had significantly lower severity indices (mean ± SD, 0.6 ± 9 vs. 1.3 ± 1.9; P = .05). Results confirm earlier findings that group A RSV infection results in greater disease severity than group B infection among hospitalized infants.