A report on the association of influenza B virus with respiratory tract infection of hospitalized children in Saudi Arabia.

Influenza viruses are recognized as one of the major causes of respiratory tract infection in young children and elderly people throughout the world. In this report, influenza B virus was detected when 200 clinical samples of nasopharyngeal aspirates, collected from hospitalized children aged from one month to three years with respiratory tract infections, were tested by Reverse Transcription Polymerase Chain Reaction (RT-PCR). PCR products on the conserved regions sequence of the non-structural gene identified the presence of influenza B virus in the clinical samples. This finding is important and it may become a real threat if not well considered. Due to massive mutations that influenza virus type B undergone, high protective measured should be taken. Therefore, further characterization and isolation of the virus are essentially needed.