Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is showing up in young children across Minnesota at a rapid rate according to the Minnesota Department of Health.
According to their data, a majority of the 120 RSV cases reported last week involve children ages 0 to 1 years old. There were 70 RSV cases reported the week before.
Dr. Stacene Maroushek, a Hennepin Healthcare pediatrician, told WCCO Radio's John Hines on Friday that RSV symptoms often appear as a cold, but can quickly turn severe for young children and older adults.
"It is seeming to effect younger kids under age 5 and is giving them a lot difficulty breathing and sometimes even a need for oxygen, which is what is clogging some of the hospitals and emergency rooms across the country these days," Dr. Maroushek said.
Like many other cold viruses, RSV typically starts with some low-grade fevers, a sore throat, and runny nose. Dr. Maroushek said that coughing and difficulty breathing typically shows up a few days into the illness.
"If your child just has a runny nose, has a sore throat, and they're not really struggling to breath or having their ribs really sucking in when they breath, they don't necessarily need to be seen by a physician," Dr. Maroushek said. "If your child gets to the point where they're really lethargic, not moving around as much or being as active as they could, and really working hard to breath with fast breathing and pulling in their ribs, they need to be seen right away."
Dr. Maroushek pointed to the fact that many young children, particularly from ages 0 to 3, have not developed immunity to RSV in the past few years due to Covid-19.
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Prior to the pandemic, a new, more aggressive strain of RSV was reported.
"Combining the no immunity in kids for the last three years, a strain that's more aggressive, and back pedaling a lot of the social distancing, masking, and a lot of things we were doing with Covid sort of adds up to a perfect storm of a lot these kids getting sick all at once."
Among their recommendations, the CDC says washing hands, avoiding close contact with sick people, and cleaning and disinfecting surfaces are among the best ways to prevent contracting and spreading RSV.