Update: respiratory syncytial virus activity--United States, 1994-95 season.

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), a common cause of winter outbreaks of acute respiratory disease, causes an estimated 90,000 hospitalizations and 4500 deaths each year from lower respiratory tract disease in both infants and young children in the United States. Outbreaks occur annually throughout the United States, and community activity usually peaks within 1 month of the national peak. RSV activity in the United States is monitored by the National Respiratory and Enteric Virus Surveillance System (NREVSS), a voluntary, laboratory-based system. This report presents provisional surveillance results from the NREVSS for RSV during July 2-December 9, 1994, and summarizes trends in RSV from July 1, 1990, through July 1, 1994.