BACKGROUND In Africa, especially in West Africa, studies about the prevalence and diversity of respiratory viruses (influenza and others) in elderly people are largely lacking. In studies done elsewhere, it is well established that older people, when compared with younger adults, are at greater risk of significant morbidity and mortality from complications arising from influenza. The main aim o...

BACKGROUND To date, only influenza and RSV testing are recommended for respiratory viruses' detection in paediatric units. In this study, we described, according to seasons, ages and clinical units, the results obtained in children (<15 years old) by multiplex-PCR (mPCR) tests allowing a quick and wide range detection of all respiratory viruses. These results were also compared with RSV specifi...

Coronavirus is a common cause of upper respiratory tract infection in children and has also been occasionally associated with lower respiratory tract infections. Use of reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction has aided in the rapid and reliable detection of these viruses, and thus has led to identification of these viruses as etiology of respiratory disease in more cases. We here presen...

Together with influenza, the non-influenza RNA respiratory viruses (NIRVs), which include respiratory syncytial virus, parainfluenza viruses, coronavirus, rhinovirus, and human metapneumovirus, represent a considerable global health burden, as recognised by WHO's Battle against Respiratory Viruses initiative. By contrast with influenza viruses, little is known about the contemporaneous global d...

In 2009, a novel H1N1 influenza (pH1N1) virus caused the first influenza pandemic in 40 y. The virus was identified as a triple reassortant between avian, swine, and human influenza viruses, highlighting the importance of reassortment in the generation of viruses with pandemic potential. Previously, we showed that a reassortant virus composed of wild-type avian H9N2 surface genes in a seasonal ...

Respiratory infectious diseases are mainly caused by viruses or bacteria that often interact with one another. Although their presence is a prerequisite for subsequent infections, viruses and bacteria may be present in the nasopharynx without causing any respiratory symptoms. The upper respiratory tract hosts a vast range of commensals and potential pathogenic bacteria, which form a complex mic...

BACKGROUND Acute respiratory infections are an important cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide, with a major burden of disease in developing countries. The relative contribution of viruses in acute lower respiratory infections (ALRI) is, however, poorly documented in Lao PDR. OBJECTIVE The objective of this study is to investigate the etiology of ALRI in patients of all ages in two hospi...

While influenza viruses are a common respiratory pathogen, sporadic reports of conjunctivitis following human infection demonstrates the ability of this virus to cause disease outside of the respiratory tract. The ocular surface represents both a potential site of virus replication and a portal of entry for establishment of a respiratory infection. However, the properties which govern ocular tr...

Case Report: Some viruses have been reported to cause respiratory and gastroenteric infections simultaneously. In this case we present isolation of human respiratory virus (RSV) type B from diarrheal sample of a 12 months' child with acute gastroenteritis. Results: The results indicated the presence of RSV subtype B genome in all three stool samples. Moreover, no sign of co-infections with oth...

INTRODUCTION Recent literature suggests that dual or multiple virus infections may affect disease severity. However, few studies have investigated the effect of co-infection with influenza A viruses. OBJECTIVES To identify the association between influenza A and respiratory viruses co-infections with disease outcome. METHODOLOGY Data for samples from North West England tested between Januar...