Human rhinovirus infection in children with cystic fibrosis

Nasopharyngeal swabs obtained from 78 pediatric patients with cystic fibrosis (CF), including 47 with acute pulmonary exacerbation and 31 in a stable clinical condition, were evaluated for 17 respiratory viruses. Human rhinovirus (HRV) was the most frequently detected virus in patients with pulmonary exacerbation and in those who were clinically stable (21.3% vs. 12.9%; P = 0.52). HRV-A was the main RV detected in patients with pulmonary exacerbations. However, no prevalence of particular HRV-A subtypes was found. This study highlights that RV is frequently found in the respiratory secretions of patients with CF and the impact of HRV-A appears higher than that of the other HRV types in patients with pulmonary exacerbations.