LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Pfizer has selected Norton Infectious Diseases Institute as the only site in United States to study effective early detection methods of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) in adults.

Norton Healthcare announced the partnership on Monday in a news release. Funded by Pfizer, Norton officials said the study will examine the best ways to identify RSV and determine which adults are most often impacted.

“For the most part, RSV attention has been focused on children, but some studies have suggested that up to 10% of adults with respiratory illness have RSV.” said Dr. Julio A. Ramirez, chief scientific officer at Norton Infectious Diseases Institute.

Maggie Roetker, Norton's public relations director, said patients 40 years and older experiencing respiratory symptoms who are admitted to one of Norton's four adult-service hospitals in Louisville are invited to participate in the study. Nasopharyngeal, saliva, sputum and blood samples will be collected once enrolled.

Symptoms of a mild RSV infection are similar to a cold—including congestion and runny nose, cough, low fever, sore throat, headache and sneezing. RSV can lead to wheezing, difficulty breathing, higher fever and more in severe cases.

Health experts have found RSV can also cause pneumonia, bronchiolitis and congestive heart failure. Breathing often is most affected.

“The majority of adults who get RSV have very minor symptoms,” said Ruth Carrico, Ph.D., DNP, APRN, FNP-C, CIC, FSHEA, FNAP, FAAN, director of research operations, Norton Infectious Diseases Institute. “But severe cases do occur in adults.”

Norton Infectious Diseases Institute began enrolling patients in December 2021 and has more than 300 patients participating to date. The goal is to enroll up to 3,000 individuals over the course of the next two RSV seasons, which generally run November through April.