Background The acute respiratory illnesses caused by adenoviruses (RI-APC-ARD)1-3constitute a major problem in military medicine. These agents are the cause for the majority of cases of acute respiratory illness among new recruits in the Armed Forces.4-8By contrast, adenovirus-caused respiratory disease is relatively infrequent among the "seasoned" cadre, and this is true also of the adult civilian population. The respiratory illnesses caused by adenoviruses fall into the general syndromes of febrile catarrh, undifferentiated acute respiratory disease (ARD), nonstreptococcal exudate pharyngitis, atypical pneumonia unassociated with the development of cold agglutinins, and pharyngoconjunctival fever.9-11More commonly, these illnesses are referred to as catarrhal fever, grippe, acute pharyngitis, "severe colds," or virus pneumonia. The adenoviruses have not been associated etiologically with the common cold.9,12At least 14 distinct immunological types of adenovirus have been recognized up to the present.13Only three of these, however, namely, Types 4, 7, and 3,