The respiratory syncytial virus causes 80% of bronchiolitis and pneumonia in babies under one year of age and is the main cause of hospitalization in this age group. This virus is also associated with an increased risk of asthma, otitis, and allergic rhinitis.
Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) remains a great unknown to many parents. What is very familiar are the consequences it causes.
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RSV is behind most lower respiratory tract infections, such as bronchiolitis and pneumonia, in children under one year. It is also the main reason for admission to the hospital.
A VERY CONTAGIOUS VIRUS
The respiratory syncytial virus is a very common and highly contagious pathogen circulating between November and March.
It is spread through coughing and sneezing; that is why it is spread more frequently in nurseries and schools due to close contact between children.
Now, 33% of infections to babies who are still at home occur through siblings already in school. As a result, the incidence of RSV is almost double in children with siblings than in single children.
According to the Association of Pediatrics, respiratory syncytial virus infections cause up to 20,000 visits to the emergency room and up to 14,000 hospitalizations.
And 80% of bronchiolitis, a common lung infection in babies and young children that causes inflammation and congestion in the lung’s bronchioles, is caused by this virus.
SYMPTOMS OF RSV INFECTION
After an incubation period that can go between 1 and 4 days, there are a series of symptoms that can be an indication of infection by the respiratory syncytial virus:
- Dry cough, sneezing, nasal congestion, and otitis are the first signs.
But the infection can go further and cause fever, lack of appetite, irritability, difficulty sleeping, or prolonged sleep.
If the virus progresses to cause bronchiolitis and pneumonia, the child finds it more difficult to breathe, and the skin may have a bluish hue because the oxygen pressure in the blood decreases.
UNPREDICTABLE EVOLUTION
A few weeks without treatment, although in some cases, the infection worsens.
It worsens and is unpredictable, although it is known that premature children or those with heart or respiratory diseases.
But this risk also affects many other children: 98.3% of those hospitalized for RSV are healthy full-term children under one year of age.
This virus affects completely healthy children. Those under six months of age are the ones who, above all, can get very sick and require hospitalization, sometimes even in intensive care, section head of the Service of Pediatrics, Infectious and Tropical Diseases.
Although bronchiolitis and pneumonia are the best-known consequences of respiratory syncytial virus, the infection it causes also increases the risk of otitis, allergic rhinitis, and asthma.
HOW IS RSV INFECTION TREATED?
Treatment is limited to relieving symptoms, and antibiotics are not prescribed. These drugs work against infections caused by bacteria but not against viral ones.
More severe cases with shortness of breath are hospitalized and may require supplemental oxygen, intravenous fluids, and mechanical ventilation.
