Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infection (RSV)
What You Should Know About RSV In Babies
RSV is a respiratory infection that is common and sometimes serious in babies. Some symptoms include difficulty breathing, lethargy, cough, and more.
Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a serious respiratory infection that can affect people of all ages.
But RSV is most serious when it occurs in babies. That's because babies' airways aren't as well-developed, so they cannot cough up mucus like older children or adults. Also, their airways are smaller, so they can experience airway blockage easily, causing trouble breathing.
In many people, RSV causes cold symptoms, often with a cough. In babies, RSV can cause a more serious illness called bronchiolitis. Babies with bronchiolitis have wheezing along with their cough.
RSV can lead to other severe infections, including pneumonia. In some cases, babies may need to receive treatment at a hospital.
RSV is a virus, so there are currently no medications that can cure it to shorten the course of the illness. Instead, doctors will often recommend treatments or remedies to help manage symptoms until the infection passes.
People often transmit RSV from November to April, when cooler temperatures bring people indoors and when they're more likely to interact with others. People can also transmit RSV earlier in the year. For example, in 2022, the RSV season started earlier, with a high number of cases in October. Transmission can also occasionally happen during summer months.
In older children, RSV can cause symptoms similar to that of a cold. But in babies, the virus causes more severe symptoms.
RSV tends to follow a timeline of symptoms. Symptoms often appear 4 to 6 days after exposure to the virus. However, a baby may start experiencing symptoms earlier or later.
Symptoms a baby may have with RSV include:
Some babies are more likely to experience RSV symptoms. Research from 2022 indicates this to especially be true for those born prematurely or babies with heart problems or a history of wheezing or breathing issues.
RSV vs. COVID-19RSV and COVID-19 are both respiratory infections and share many similar symptoms. Both conditions can cause fever, cough, runny nose, and sneezing. Upset stomach, vomiting, or diarrhea may also occur in babies with COVID-19.
If your child has any of the above symptoms, their pediatrician may recommend testing them for both RSV and COVID-19, depending on cases in your area and their exposure risk to either of these viruses.
RSV cases can range from mild cold symptoms to those of severe bronchiolitis. Even if symptoms are mild, it's important to call your pediatrician if you suspect your baby has RSV. Always get emergency medical care if your baby appears to have trouble breathing.
Emergency symptoms to watch out for include:
In the most severe cases, RSV may require the help of a breathing machine known as a mechanical ventilator. This machine can help to inflate your baby's lungs until the virus goes away.
Doctors used to routinely treat many cases of RSV with bronchodilators. Some doctors still use bronchodilators for RSV treatment, but experts no longer recommend this for the most part.
Doctors prescribe bronchodilators for people with asthma or COPD to help open up the airways and treat wheezing, but they don't help the wheezing that comes with RSV bronchiolitis.
If your baby has dehydration, their doctor may also provide intravenous fluid.
Antibiotics won't help your baby's RSV because antibiotics treat bacterial infections. RSV is a viral infection.
If your doctor gives you the OK to treat RSV at home, you'll likely need a few tools. These will keep your baby's secretions (mucus) as thin as possible so they don't affect their breathing.
A bulb syringeYou can use a bulb syringe to clear thick secretions from your baby's nose.
To use the bulb syringe:
It's especially important to use the bulb syringe before your baby's feeding. A clear nose makes it easier for your baby to eat. Combine the tool use with over-the-counter saline drops, which you can place into each nostril and suction out afterward.
Cool mist humidifierA humidifier can introduce moisture into the air, helping thin your baby's secretions. Make sure to clean and care for the humidifier properly.
Hot water or steam humidifiers could be harmful to your baby because they can cause scalding.
You can talk with your child's doctor about treating any fevers with acetaminophen. Your doctor will suggest a dose based on your baby's weight. Do not give your baby aspirin, as this can harm their health.
Providing fluids, such as breast milk or formula, can prevent dehydration in your baby. You can also ask your doctor about potentially giving your baby an electrolyte-replacing solution, like Pedialyte.
Keep your baby in an upright position, which makes it easier for them to breathe. You can keep your baby more upright in a stable and secure car seat or baby seat while they are awake during the day.
Except while in a car, never put a baby to sleep in a car seat due to the risk of suffocation. If using a car seat to prop your baby up while they are awake, place the car seat on a stable, secure, low surface with direct supervision at all times.
Limiting your baby's exposure to cigarette smoke is also vital to keeping them healthy. Cigarette smoke can make your baby's symptoms worse.
When an otherwise healthy baby has RSV, they can pass on the infection to someone for 3 to 8 days. Try to keep the child with the infection separate from other siblings or children to prevent transmission.
RSV is transmissible through direct and indirect contact with a person who has an active infection. Transmission can involve touching a person's hand after they sneeze or cough, then rubbing your eyes or nose.
Frequent handwashing with warm, soapy water for at least 20 seconds per time is the best way to reduce the risk of RSV. It's also important to help your baby cover sneezes and coughs.
The virus can also live on hard surfaces, such as a crib or toys, for several hours. If your baby has RSV, regularly clean toys and surfaces where they play and eat to help reduce the spread of germs.
Babies can make a full recovery from RSV in 1 to 2 weeks. Most babies can recover from RSV without receiving treatment in a hospital setting.
If you think your baby has dehydration or is in moderate to severe distress, get emergency medical care.
New Infant RSV Antibody Treatment Shows Strong Results
March 12, 2024 – The new RSV antibody treatment for babies has been highly effective in its first season, according to a first look at data from four children's hospitals.
Babies who received the new preventive treatment for RSV shortly after birth were 90% less likely to be severely sickened with the potentially deadly respiratory illness, according to the new estimate published by the CDC. The data is the first real-world evaluation of Beyfortus (the generic name is nirsevimab), which was approved by the FDA last July.
RSV is a seasonal illness that affects more people – particularly infants and the elderly – in the fall and winter. Symptoms are usually mild in healthy adults, but infants are particularly at risk of getting bronchiolitis, which results in exhausting wheezing and coughing in babies due to swelling in their airways and lungs. Babies who are hospitalized may need fluids and medical devices to help them breathe.
RSV peaked this season from November to January, with more than 10,000 monthly diagnoses reported to the CDC.
The new CDC analysis was conducted among about 700 babies hospitalized for severe respiratory problems from October to the end of February. Among the babies in the study, 407 were diagnosed with RSV and 292 tested negative. The researchers found that 1% of babies in the study who were diagnosed with RSV had received Beyfortus, while the remaining babies who were positive for the virus had not.
Among the babies hospitalized for other severe respiratory problems, 18% had received Beyfortus. Overall, just 59 babies among the nearly 700 in the study received Beyfortus, perhaps reflecting the short supply of the medicine the first season it was available. The report authors noted that babies in the study who did receive Beyfortus also tended to have high-risk medical conditions.
The number of babies nationwide who received Beyfortus during this first season of availability is unclear, but a January CDC survey showed that 4 in 10 parents said their babies under 8 months old had received the treatment. The Wall Street Journal reported recently that a shortage last fall resulted from underestimated demand and from production plans that were set before the CDC decided to recommend that all infants under 8 months old receive Beyfortus if their mothers did not get a maternal vaccine that can protect infants from RSV.
Both the antibody treatment for infants and the maternal vaccine were shown in clinical trials to be about 80% effective at preventing severe illness stemming from RSV.
The authors of the latest CDC report concluded that "… this early estimate supports the current nirsevimab recommendation for the prevention of severe RSV disease in infants. Infants should be protected by maternal RSV vaccination or infant receipt of nirsevimab."
US Study Says Treatment 90% Effective Against RSV In Infants
A new treatment for infant respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)—a leading cause of severe illness in US babies—is 90 percent effective in preventing hospitalization, health authorities said Thursday.
A study from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) showed that nirsevimab prevented infants from being hospitalized with RSV, which causes bronchiolitis, in nine out of ten cases, the agency said.
The CDC said it recommends the antibody drug for infants under eight months whose mothers did not receive the existing maternal RSV vaccine during pregnancy and who are entering their first RSV season, which runs from October to March in the United States.
Around 58,000 to 80,000 children aged under age five are hospitalized with RSV each year in the United States, according to the CDC, with an estimated 100 to 300 infant deaths.
The study, which followed the cases of 685 babies from October to February, is the first public data on the effectiveness of nirsevimab, which was first introduced in August.
"Results show that nirsevimab was 90% effective at preventing RSV-associated hospitalization in infants during their first RSV season," the CDC said in a statement.
However, the health body noted that it was continuing to review the treatment and that more research was needed to determine its effectiveness over a full RSV season.
A separate measure, a maternal RSV vaccine called abrysvo, is already available in the United States for those in their 32nd through 36th weeks of pregnancy, if that period falls between September and January.
© 2024 AFP
Citation: US study says treatment 90% effective against RSV in infants (2024, March 8) retrieved 30 March 2024 from https://medicalxpress.Com/news/2024-03-treatment-effective-rsv-infants.Html
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