title: [Microbiological diagnosis of viral respiratory infections].
abstract: Acute respiratory infection is the most common disease occurring over a person's lifetime, with etiological variations determined mainly by age, environmental circumstances, the healthcare setting, and the underlying pathology. More than 200 different viruses distributed in six viral families have been implicated in the pathogenesis of respiratory tract infection. These facts are generating an increasing diagnostic demand that should be incorporated into the healthcare setting without delay. To meet this demand, the Spanish Society of Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology has updated its Standard Procedure for the microbiological diagnosis of viral respiratory infection. This document contains an update primarily of infections caused by influenza viruses, and secondarily, infections due to other conventional and emerging respiratory viruses. In all cases, the methods for direct virological diagnosis (cell culture, and detection of antigens and nucleic acid) are reviewed, with special reference to techniques for molecular detection and genetic characterization.
authors.affiliation: Centro Nacional de la Gripe, Facultad de Medicina de Valladolid, Valladolid, España. eiros@med.uva.es
authors.forename: José M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Eiros
authors.forename: Raúl
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ortiz de Lejarazu
authors.forename: Alberto
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Tenorio
authors.forename: Inmaculada
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Casas
authors.forename: Francisco
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Pozo
authors.forename: Guillermo
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Ruiz
authors.forename: Pilar
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Pérez-Breña
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D000956:Antigens, Viral / Q000097:blood; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000097:blood; D006801:Humans; D007251:Influenza, Human / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000821:virology; D025202:Molecular Diagnostic Techniques / Q000379:methods; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000097:blood; D012141:Respiratory Tract Infections / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000821:virology; D014773:Virology / Q000379:methods*; D014776:Virus Cultivation; D014777:Virus Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000821:virology
chemical_list: D000956:Antigens, Viral; D004279:DNA, Viral; D012367:RNA, Viral