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Triangle-area hospitals experience large increase of a respiratory virus mostly threatening very young children

More hospitals have seen a large increase in the number of viruses that are of special concern for the very young. It's called RSV and the Triangle area has been hit hard.
Posted 2022-10-06T22:46:16+00:00 - Updated 2022-10-06T22:54:09+00:00
Triangle hospitals see sharp rise in RSV cases among infants, young children

More hospitals have seen a large increase in the number of viruses that are of special concern for the very young. It’s called RSV and the Triangle area has been hit hard.

Healthcare experts brace themselves for every flu season and other annual respiratory disease waves.

After COVID-19, it has grown more difficult to predict what time of year those threats will appear and how severe they might be.

"And it looks like we are seeing probably a record of RSV cases right now," said Jessica Dixon, an infection prevention specialist with WakeMed. She says from September 1st through October 5, WakeMed has seen a total of 619 RSV cases.

Dixon said, "RSV is something that is really common in infants and young children. it’s very easily spread."

UNC Health officials say they saw a 142 RSV cases in the last week of September alone. Duke Health reports a similar rise.

There’s no vaccine for RSV (Respiratory Syncytial Virus) but Dr. Michael Smith says more help is now available. "This week, we started administering "Synagis"," said Dr. Smith, the division chief of pediatric infectious disease at Duke.

He says Synagis is a monoclonal antibody that they give to high-risk children at the hospital before they are discharged.

Dr. Smith says it’s not just for young kids, a pediatrician can provide it for older children at high-risk from RSV. The medication can also help children with asthma.

For most families with children, Dr. Smith says RSV is not a big threat. "It’s like a normal cold so that most kids are going to be fine."

For now, hospitals look forward to when seasons of the flu and RSV will be more predictable. "In this post-Covid world that we’re living in it seems like all bets are off when it comes to seasonality and respiratory viruses," said WakeMed’s Jessica Dixon.

WRAL also contacted Cape Fear Valley Medical Center about their RSV cases. They say they have not seen a similar spike of cases as in Triangle area hospitals.

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