ABSTRACT
Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a member of the pneumovirus genus and paramyxoviridae family, discovered in 1956. It is an RNA virus with an enveloped, nonsegmented, negative-sense, single-stranded genome with 10 genes encoded for 11 proteins. RSV is the most important cause of acute lower respiratory tract infections (LRTIs) in infants and it is associated with hospitalization and mortality during the first years of life. RSV disease is particularly severe in some groups of high-risk infants, in whom the infection often leads to severe respiratory failure, cardiac complications, and death. RSV infection is one of the most important causes of rehospitalization and respiratory deterioration in preterm infants with chronic lung disease. Clinical manifestations of the RSV infection include both upper respiratory tract infections and LRTIs. Respiratory morbidity of preterm infants increases after an episode of RSV LRTI, with an increase of respiratory symptoms, daycare attendance, hospitalization for respiratory disease, and use of drugs as inhaled bronchodilators.
