@article {Stelzer-BraidP1198, author = {Sacha Stelzer-Braid and Christiana Willenborg and Brett Toelle and Frances Garden and Adam Jaffe and Roxanne Strachan and Yvonne Belessis and Brian Oliver and Helen Reddel and Guy Marks and William Rawlinson and Euan Tovey}, title = {Rhinovirus infection and asthma symptoms in a longitudinal cohort of Australian children}, volume = {44}, number = {Suppl 58}, elocation-id = {P1198}, year = {2014}, publisher = {European Respiratory Society}, abstract = {Aims. Viral infections are the main cause of exacerbations and acute hospital admissions in children with asthma. Little is known about viruses circulating in the community and their impact on day-to-day fluctuation of asthma symptoms.We hypothesised that such infections would be associated with increased symptoms.Methods. 67 children, aged 5-12, with moderate asthma, were recruited from a High Risk Asthma Clinic or Emergency Department. They self-collected nasal wash and exhaled breath samples and recorded asthma and cold symptoms and lung function, twice a week for 10 weeks. The presence of 8 viruses, including human rhinovirus (hRV), was analysed by PCR and sequencing. A mixed model, to account for repeated measures, was used to determine the current and delayed impact of viruses on symptoms and lung function.Results.25.5\% of nasal samples and 11.5\% of breath samples were hRV positive; only 1.8\% were positive for other viruses. With genotyping (56\% of positive samples), 58.0\% were hRV-A positive, 22.7\% were hRV-B positive and 19.2\% were hRV-C positive. The presence of hRV in nasal wash, but not in breath, was associated with the presence of symptoms; adjusted odds ratios: cough 2.53 (95\%CI 1.62-3.94), wheeze 3.05 (1.89-4.93), self-report fever 2.07 (1.17-3.64) and coryzal symptoms 1.95 (1.14-3.32) over the previous 3-4 days. These associations remained 3-4 days later, but generally not 7 days later.Conclusions:In a 10-week study of children with moderate asthma, the presence of hRV in nasal wash, but not in exhaled breath, was associated with mild worsening of day-to-day cold and asthma symptoms for up to a week.Support: NHMRC Project Grant 633238.}, issn = {0903-1936}, URL = {https://erj.ersjournals.com/content/44/Suppl_58/P1198}, eprint = {https://erj.ersjournals.com/content}, journal = {European Respiratory Journal} }