Caratterizzazione molecolare e clinica dei genotipi del virus respiratorio sinciziale in un centro medico nella regione centrale della Taiwan durante l'era COVID-19.

BACKGROUND: Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a leading cause of respiratory illness in young children. The COVID-19 pandemic profoundly altered RSV circulation, yet the regional molecular and structural characteristics of circulating RSV strains in Taiwan during this period remain incompletely characterized. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective study of RSV infections identified by viral culture at a tertiary medical center in Central Taiwan from 2016 to 2023. Epidemiological patterns, clinical features, and outcomes were analyzed. A representative subset of culture-positive isolates underwent F and G gene sequencing, phylogenetic analysis, and AlphaFold2-based structural modeling to e