- Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a common virus that may cause severe symptoms in infants, young children, and even older adults.
- RSV is the most common cause of infant hospitalizations in high-income countries.
- In 2019, about 1.4 million infants ages 0–6 months globally were hospitalized for episodes of RSV-associated acute lower respiratory infection.
- RSV infection can become serious, but there are ways to protect infants and young children from severe illness.
Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) commonly presents with cold-like symptoms, such as a runny nose and cough.
However, in
RSV is the
In 2019, about
What can be done to protect infants and small children from severe illness due to RSV? Medical News Today spoke with pediatricians to learn more.
According to Dr. Danelle Fisher, a board certified pediatrician and Chair of Pediatrics at Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, CA, while RSV will cause symptoms of the common cold in older children and adults, it may affect infants and young children differently.
“The younger you are, the more chance you have of this virus causing severe respiratory issues, including wheezing and difficulty breathing,” Dr. Fisher told MNT.
“A lot of times, even the little babies will go apneic, which means they pause or stop breathing for a little while. The younger you are, the more dangerous it can be.”
Dr. Mohamed Zebda, a board certified pediatrician at the UH Health Family Care Center and clinical associate professor at the Tilman J. Fertitta Family College of Medicine at the…
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