With flu season right around the corner, there has been a recent rise in cases for Respiratory Syncytial Virus.
Also known as RSV, the virus is a more common kind of respiratory virus according to the CDC and can cause very mild, cold-like symptoms. It’s most commonly caused by bronchiolitis.
Most people recover from RSV within a few weeks but it has been proven to be more serious among infants and older adults and is said to affect certain populations of people more than others.
Primary Children’s Hospital physician Dr. Per Gesteland says that the virus cases will continue on an upward trajectory for quite some time. How bad the cases get and how big of a deal they become, it’s only a matter of time before we find out.
Gesteland believes that as precautions for COVID-19 continue to wind down, similar precautions that helped keep RSV rates low will also be winding down. Following last year’s summertime outbreak, Gesteland says that he isn’t surprised that RSV is back, but admits that it’s unusual to see it start taking off in October.
Currently, aside from COVID-19, RSV is the only virus in moderate transmission.
