Background: About 100 serotypes of human rhinovirus (HRV), classified into two species, have been identified by 1990. Uncultivable HRV variants have recently been identified and designated a new species. Recent improved diagnosis has led to a re-appraisal of the clinical impact of HRV infections in lower respiratory diseases.
Objectives: To characterise clinical features in hospitalised patients with positive HRV RNA detection and to determine the distribution of HRV species in respiratory infections diagnosed during the winter of 2009-2010.
Study design: Prospective virus typing was conducted by sequencing the VP4/VP2 genomic regions, and clinical data were collected.
Results: Fifty-eight patients (for 63 respiratory specimens) were included. Phylogenetic analysis identified 52% of HRV species A, 6% of species B and 40% of species C, and revealed the co-circulation of 34 different HRV types during the study period. Three infants had successive infections with two or three different types. Five patients were admitted to an intensive care unit, four of them on arrival. Bronchiolitis, pneumonia and exacerbation of asthma were observed in 34/45 children. Pneumonia and severe exacerbation of chronic lung disease were observed in 8/13 adults, of whom 1, with immunocompromised status, died of multivisceral failure.
Conclusions: This study underlines the diversity of co-circulating strains and the potential severity of clinical presentations associated with HRV infections.
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