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During December, 1962 to March, 1963 the Glasgow area experienced an epidemic of RS virus infection amongst young children. Throat swabs for virus isolation and two or more serial specimens of sera were obtained from each of 42 children (41 under 3 years of age) with acute respiratory infections.

Two mid-winter outbreaks of respiratory disease in a premature nursery, one in 1962, and the second a year later in 1963, are described. The majority of the 14 infected prematures were severely ill. They presented with mild upper respiratory symptoms that continued for from 1 to 8 days before the acute onset of dyspnea. Nine had radiologic evidence of pneumonia. Certain clinical manifestations were sufficiently characteristic to suggest a common etiology. The virologic data that support the association of these epidemics with respiratory syncytial virus infection are presented in detail.

SummaryA strain of RS virus (the CH 18537 strain isolated during 1962) was demonstrated to differ antigenically from the Long strain (isolated during 1956). This difference was reciprocal when neutralization tests were carried out using post infection ferret serum. Reinoculation of the ferrets with the Long and CH 18537 strains generally resulted in reinfection which was manifest by a broadening of the antibody spectrum with little or no change in the homologous antibody titer. In addition the growth of the CH 18537 strain in the ferret turbinate was studied and found to be different from that of the A-1 strain of RS virus. Differences between the Long and the CH 18537 strains of RS virus were minimal when the viruses were used to assay antibody response of infants infected with RS virus during 1956, 1960 and 1962. However, 2 infants infected with RS virus during 1956 developed antibodies which were more reactive with the 1962 isolate. It was suggested that variants of RS virus may circulate simultaneousl...

Identification of a Bovine Mucosal-Disease Virus isolated in Sweden as Myxovirus para-influenzae 3