ABSTRACT
Respiratory viruses are one of the most common causes of infectious disease and have a wide range of health effects, from mild symptoms to life-threatening diseases.1 Most respiratory viruses spread rapidly through communities via person-to-person transmission, particularly in crowded indoor environments such as schools. The cost of viral infections includes decreased productivity and time lost from work or school, visits to health-care providers and purchase of pharmaceuticals.2 A recent report estimated that 500 million episodes of viral respiratory infections (VRI) occur annually in the USA resulting in $16.8 billion in direct costs and $7.6 billion in indirect costs for employed individuals.3
