RSV
Respiratory syncytial virus is a viral infection affecting both adults
and children. For most adults and children over the age of three it is the
cause of little more than a head cold. In children especially infants with
smaller airways it can frequently cause more serious illnesses. This highly
contagious infection causes an increase in mucus production in the upper
airways. This mucus is hard to clear, especially for young infants, causing
their work of breathing to increase. It can also cause a lower respiratory
tract infection, such as bronchiolitis or pneumonia.
Because RSV is a viral infection, treatments are normally supportive in
nature. A younger child less than one year, because of their smaller airways,
are more severely affected by RSV. Breathing and fighting this infection
can cause young children to have problems feeding properly. This may become
such a problem that the child may become dehydrated and doctor may start
an IV and/or baby will be admitted to the hospital. Other problems caused
by this condition include a decrease in oxygen saturation. The O2 sat as
it is also known normally is normally around 97% in a young infant. If enough of the airways
becomes blocked by mucus or if a pneumonia develops than the oxygen saturation
may start to decrease. The child in trying to compensate for this will increase
their respiratory rate, their heart rate will also increase. If the o2 sat
becomes low enough, the child may have to be admitted and placed on some
form of supplemental oxygen. This may involve a croup tent, a device which
pumps oxygen into a closed plastic tent, giving the child more oxygen to
breathe and thus raising their o2 sat and decreasing their work of breathing
and heart rate. It may also involve a nasal cannula, a small tube with prongs inserting into the nose which supply extra oxygen.
If the infection becomes severe enough more drastic measures may be needed.
These may include a ventilator if the patient goes into respiratory failure,
antiviral medicines if the child has other conditions which may make the
RSV infection a serious threat to the infants health.
By 2 years of age, almost all children have had at least one RSV infection. But according to a study in Jama RSV has been estimated to
have caused 137 deaths in children under 5 years of age. Only 13 of these
deaths were in children from 1-4.
Source - RSV infection in infants and young children
Resources - April
03 Respiratory Reviews Article