Major respiratory infection study completes recruitment

A Southampton-led study on severe viral infections has reached its target of 1,000 participants.

The UNIVERSAL study is investigating the impact of severe respiratory viruses on patients and the NHS.

The study is being led by Professor Tom Wilkinson and the Southampton Clinical Trials Unit (SCTU). University Hospital Southampton is the study sponsor.

Understanding respiratory viruses

Samples from the 1,000 participants will now be used to find out which infections are most prevalent and likely to cause the most serious problems.

Professor Wilkinson is Professor of Respiratory Medicine at the University of Southampton. He leads the NIHR Southampton Biomedical Research Centre's respiratory and allergy theme.

“This study came about as we wanted to build upon vast amounts of knowledge and experience gained from treating people with COVID-19,” he said.

“What we saw over the course of the pandemic was that individual responses to respiratory viral infections varied from patient to patient, ranging from very mild symptoms to severe infections which required hospital care.

“What we want to be able to do is understand more about how and when patients with different respiratory viruses may progress to more serious disease, and help develop effective antiviral and anti-inflammatory treatments to combat these infections.

Identifying patients likely to become seriously ill

Participants are assessed by medical teams and fill in questionnaires. This helps the team to monitor their symptoms and any progression of the infection.

Their blood and swab samples will now be analysed. This will identify biomarkers that indicate immune and inflammatory responses in the body.

Abigail Jones is Trial Manager for UNIVERSAL at the SCTU.

“By combining the information on patients’ symptoms with the results from the sample analysis, we can build up a picture of which viruses are affecting the population,” she said.

“We hope this information will also allow us to identify those patients who are more likely to become more seriously ill and experience severe symptoms, as well as better predicting their recovery and length of stay in hospital.”

Protecting patients and strengthening our NHS

The study recruited patients at hospital sites around the UK. All participants tested positive for a viral respiratory infection.

Pedro Rodrigues is Senior Trial Manager at the SCTU. He is Co-Investigator of the UNIVERSAL study.

“Every winter, respiratory viruses like flu and RSV stretch NHS resources to their limit," he says.

“The UNIVERSAL study is tackling this, by collecting real-time data and working closely with frontline clinicians. This is crucial to help us better understand how these viruses impact patients and healthcare services.

“Our goal is to make a real-world impact, moving from sickness to prevention and from hospital care to community-based care, protecting patients and strengthening our NHS when it’s needed most.”

The team are now analysing all the data from the study participants. They hope to publish the results later this year.

Professor Wilkinson concludes: “Southampton is leading the way in respiratory research, bringing together researchers and clinicians at the University and the Hospital Trust through the NIHR Southampton Biomedical Research Centre.

“The results of the UNIVERSAL study will hopefully pave the way for more targeted care and better treatments for patients with severe respiratory infections.

“We want to thank every one of the 1,000 plus people who volunteered to take part in our study and are helping us to gain vital knowledge in this area. We would also like to thank the wonderful NHS research teams across the country who delivered the study with us.”