Premium
How rhinovirus infections cause exacerbations of asthma
Author(s) -
Gern J. E.
Publication year - 2015
Publication title -
clinical and experimental allergy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.462
H-Index - 154
eISSN - 1365-2222
pISSN - 0954-7894
DOI - 10.1111/cea.12428
Subject(s) - rhinovirus , asthma , medicine , respiratory tract infections , asthma exacerbations , immunology , respiratory tract , respiratory system , intensive care medicine , virus
Summary Rhinovirus ( RV ) infections are closely linked to exacerbations of asthma, and yet most RV infections of patients with asthma cause only upper respiratory symptoms. These findings suggest that RV and other viral infections contribute to the causation of acute exacerbations of asthma, but that additional cofactors are generally required. In fact, factors related to the host, virus, and environment have been identified that affect the severity of RV infections, and propensity to develop lower respiratory tract symptoms. This review will discuss these factors and how their effects may act alone or in combination to increase the probability of RV ‐induced exacerbations of asthma.