The work on NF-kB is one of the few areas where research into the common cold shows promise, according to Dominick A. Iacuzio, PhD, program officer for Influenza and Related Respiratory Diseases at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases in Bethesda, Maryland. The societal cost of the common cold is substantial, with 22 million days lost from work and 7.9 million doctor visits claimed each year, according to the National Center for Health Statistics in Hyattsville, Maryland. However, the personal cost to individuals experiencing a cold is minor. But interferon's side effects, such as nosebleeds, were unacceptable, Iacuzio said. Another attempt to reduce the spread of the virus entailed treating facial tissues with virucidals.
Most people resign themselves to having two to four colds a year.
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