The role of the respiratory syncytial virus in airway syndromes in childhood.

The majority of infants admitted to hospital in infancy with lower respiratory tract infections (LRTIs) have been infected with the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). Infants and young children experiencing RSV LRTIs experience increased respiratory morbidity in subsequent years, although the prevalence falls rapidly in early childhood. Recent data support the suggestion that in most subjects, this recurrent morbidity is not attributable to atopic asthma and that in most respects, the acute and long-term outcomes with RSV infections are similar in nature to those attributable to other viruses. The phenotype of the acute illness probably provides better prognostic information than the type of virus.