Forty-seven bronchoalveolar lavages (BAL) were obtained from 41 patients with acute pneumonia attending an intensive care unit. By molecular diagnosis, 30% of total BAL and 63% of bacteria-negative BAL were positive for respiratory viruses. Molecular detection allows for high-rate detection of respiratory viral infections in adult patients suffering from severe pneumonia.
High prevalence of respiratory viral infections in patients hospitalized in an intensive care unit for acute respiratory infections as detected by nucleic acid-based assays.