SSI detects rise in common cold virus

Rhinovirus is behind many current cases of illness, while influenza and coronavirus are not causing widespread sickness, DR reports, citing Denmark’s Statens Serum Institut (SSI), which monitors infection trends.

SSI’s sentinel surveillance has detected many cases of rhinovirus, a common cold virus, according to Bolette Søgaard, a section head and chief physician at the institute. She said influenza and Covid-19 could become more widespread in the coming months, but are not responsible for much illness at present.

The surveillance relies on voluntary weekly reports from general practitioners on patients with flu-like symptoms. Doctors also take samples from some patients, which SSI tests for several respiratory viruses.

People with rhinovirus should stay home while they are contagious. This typically lasts two to three days, Søgaard said. A cough can continue after a person is no longer infectious, and people who otherwise feel well can go to work with a slight lingering cough.