ATLANTA — Doctors say they’ve seen an unprecedented spike in a virus that can be deadly to children.
The symptoms of respiratory syncitial virus, or RSV, are similar to a common cold in healthy patients. But in babies with developing breathing tubes, especially premies, RSV can be deadly.
"The numbers of RSV are really unprecedented this year,” said Dr. Jim Fortenberry, a pediatrician at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta.
Fortenberry has been treating RSV for more than 25 years. He says the staff sees hundreds of cases every year, but this year sets a record.
"It's the highest number of positive tests that we've seen here at Children's since we started doing this particular test, about eight years ago,” he said.
Anyone can get RSV, but infants are the most susceptible to complications.
"Infants can require hospitalization. They may have to go to ICU and be on breathing machines, so it is something that we need to take seriously,” Fortenberry said.
Lacie Groeninger knows firsthand how scary the virus can be. Her son, Smith, has RSV, along with a heart condition.
“He got a cough on Sunday and it just seemed like her getting a common cold, and he started getting worse. We took him to our pediatrician and he tested positive for RSV," she said.
A steroid shot and some breathing medication didn’t help much so he landed at CHOA.
“They’ve been putting him on oxygen. He was on fluids for a little while," she said.
Lacie isn’t sure where he picked up the disease. They say he is improving and they hope to go home this weekend.
Fortenberry says if your baby is just sneezing and coughing, don't worry. But “if your infant is having trouble breathing, if they're breathing fast, if they're breathing hard,” it could be a sign of RSV.
If they're grunting when they breathe, if you notice blueness around their lips or fingertips he says call your pediatrician or go to the emergency room.
The respiratory virus is passed hand-to-hand or by touching hard surfaces, where the germs are abundant.
“The key way to prevent RSV infection is to wash your hands. Something simple,” he said.
In the past two weeks, we’ve seen a record number of patients with respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). RSV is a highly...
Posted by Children's Healthcare of Atlanta on Thursday, December 3, 2015
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