infectious diseases
Common Cold
Introduction
The common cold is an acute, usually afebrile, self-limited viral infection causing upper respiratory symptoms, such as rhinorrhea, cough, and sore throat. Diagnosis is clinical. Handwashing helps prevent its spread. Treatment is supportive. 100 serotypes of rhinoviruses. Coronaviruses and Acute Respiratory Syndromes (MERS and SARS) cause some outbreaks, and infections caused by Rhinovirus infections are most common during fall and spring and are less common during winter. Rhinoviruses are most efficiently spread by direct person-to-person contact, although spread may also occur via large-particle aerosols. The most potent deterrent to infection is the presence of specific neutralizing antibodies in the serum and secretions, induced by previous exposure to the same or a closely related virus. Susceptibility to colds is not affected by exposure to cold temperature, host health and nutrition, or upper respiratory tract abnormalities (eg, enlarged tonsils or adenoids). 