It mainly attacks young children and the elderly, with symptoms similar to flu and Covid-19. The good news is that it can be detected within 15 minutes with a home combined rapid test that is now available in Hungary!
100,000 RSV child deaths worldwide every year
RSV (Respiratory Syncytial Virus) and the respiratory illness it causes are relatively little known and not in the public domain, even though almost all children will contract RSV by the age of two, according to the US government’s
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
(Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) website. One in every 100 children under six months of age with RSV infection may even need hospital treatment, and an estimated 58,000 children under the age of 5 are hospitalised in the US each year. In The Lancet, a prestigious international medical journal
summarised research in the
33 million people worldwide are infected with RSV under the age of 5 years each year, and around 100,000 of them die.
This virus can also be fatal for older adults. In the United States, around 14,000 of them die from the infection every year. It can also cause more serious illness in pregnant women and immunocompromised people.
In Hungary, during last year’s epidemic season, the National Centre for Public Health (NNK) identified one and a half times as many RSV infections as SARS-CoV-2 virus infections at certain times. Between the fortieth and twentieth week of 2021 and the twentieth week of this year, influenza A led the
cases also recorded by the NNK National Influenza Reference Laboratory,
and RSV also took the top spot.
Based on reports from doctors participating in the Hungarian Respiratory Observatory Service, it is estimated that by 2022. 14-20 November. 202,500 people in the country went to the doctor with symptoms of acute respiratory infections, of whom 16,200 were diagnosed with influenza-like illness. After processing a relatively small number of NNK test material, COVID-19 appears to be the leading infection, but RSV and influenza are also detected. A 2022. 40-46. A total of 268 test samples were processed at the NNK National Influenza Reference Laboratory during the week of
according to the NNK
two influenza A(H3) and one influenza B(NT) viruses were identified, 33 people were confirmed to have Covid-19 infection and RSV was identified in four cases.
California nightmare
And why has RSV come to the fore recently? Because this year has seen a sudden increase in the number of these infections. This is because there are many more babies who were not previously exposed to RSV because they were born either just before or during the peak of the coronavirus epidemic – when very few of these viruses were circulating in the air – and did not develop the immunity that children usually do in the first few years of life. In particular
from the second half of October
the number of children infected with RSV in some US hospitals has been rising. There are hospitals with almost equal proportions of Covid-19, influenza virus and RSV infections in infectious wards.
In the state of California, including Los Angeles, combined respiratory illnesses were already reaching alarming proportions in November 2022. The first RSV death of the season also occurred: a child under 5 years of age died from a combined influenza and RSV infection. In California, one-third of children tested positive for RSV, the highest rate since autumn 2019. In Orange County, the third most populous county in the state, a health emergency has been declared due to cases of RSV and other respiratory illness requiring hospitalization. Experts there fear that the growing number of serious infections in the region will put further strain on the health system, and could soon exceed the capacity of children’s hospitals, while they continue to struggle with the coronavirus.
Droplet infection, spreads rapidly
This virus attacks cells in the mucous membrane of the respiratory system. It spreads very quickly by droplet infection, the reason being that it does not lose its infectivity on inanimate surfaces, so it remains on utensils and doorknobs. Mostly mild, cold symptoms are broadly similar to those caused by influenza A and B viruses and the coronavirus. The infectivity of RSV is broadly similar to that of Covid-19. The duration of RSV infection is usually 4-6 days. Mild symptoms are the same in children and adults. More severe symptoms are mainly seen in children under 5 years of age, adults with chronic and serious illnesses (diabetes, weakened immune system, malignant tumours, etc.) and older people. Their characteristic complications make it easier to identify the different types of virus.
Infections can be recurrent, especially in people with congenital heart and lung disease. People in hospital may need oxygen, mechanical ventilation (breathing support). Most infected people improve with these treatments and can return home within a few days.
More dangerous than the flu
However, among older people, RSV can be even more dangerous than the flu. The American journal Clinical Infectious Diseases reports on a
research,
which showed that RSV infection in older people may be associated with longer hospital stays, a higher risk of pneumonia and admission to intensive care, and a higher risk of death in the year following treatment, compared with influenza infection. If a patient survives RSV after hospitalisation, their condition can worsen and in the long term can be more fatal than influenza. According to Dr Tseng Hung Fu Tseng, co-author of the study, people underestimate the severity of illnesses caused by RSV infection. But as newer respiratory tests now allow the identification of more respiratory pathogens, including RSV, as the cause of influenza-like illness, this may change. But the fact is that, despite the recognition of the virus and the possibility of treating the diseases it causes, there is still no effective antidote to the flu. (Palivizumab has been available as a control.) This is where nirsemivab, a product jointly developed by the pharmaceutical companies Sanofi and AstraZeneca, could now bring a breakthrough. Vaccine to prevent RSV 2022. early November from the European Commission
marketing authorisation from the European Commission,
following a recommendation by the European Medicines Agency in September.
Symptom management and prevention
RSV infection can be treated primarily symptomatically; in children, this means the use of cough suppressants, nasal drops, nasal cleansing, nasal suctioning, fever control, and bronchodilator treatment if necessary. Hospitalisation is necessary if the severity of the complications warrants it (for example, in the case of respiratory failure or dehydration, if the body needs extra oxygen, or if it needs an infusion).
Families with several children are at increased risk of infection, as one child in the community can easily bring the infection home and infect the whole family, but the reverse is also true: a single member of an infected family can spread the virus to an entire community. This is why it is important to respect hygiene rules.
Especially during the epidemic season from winter to spring, wash your hands with soap even more often, use hand sanitiser, and don’t touch your face, eyes, nose or mouth with unwashed hands. Cover your mouth when you cough or sneeze (if possible, warn others). Do not share glasses or cutlery with other people, especially people who have cold symptoms. Clean and disinfect surfaces and objects that are touched by many people (toys, mobile phones, tablets, door handles). We have already learned how to do these during the coronavirus epidemic, as well as how to wear a mask in public spaces or on public transport.
In addition, it is important to take vitamin supplements (C and D) to prevent viral infections and strengthen the immune system.
As the symptoms are broadly shared by Covid-19, the influenza virus and RSV, the traditional Covid tests we have seen so far may be inadequate: they cannot identify additional viruses during an influenza pandemic or during the spread of RSV. So, if a home rapid test shows a negative result, you could still be infected with another virus. In other words, it can give us a false sense of security. Fortunately, the new
combined home quick test
which has a test cassette that can simultaneously detect whether influenza A, influenza B, Covid-19 virus, RSV, or possibly more than one of these viruses are present in the body (especially in children, several viruses can cause infection at the same time). All this can be done in a single pour and the result is ready in 15 minutes. The tests can be used painlessly by sampling from the nostril.
“Since there is a significant overlap between the symptoms of the three infections, we can prevent serious risks by being able to identify the virus as soon as possible and accurately with the combined tests, because this way targeted treatment can be started quickly and the development of serious complications can be prevented more easily” – points out Dr. Péter Várnai, medical expert of A-Lab Pharma. If the result is positive, the patient can immediately start isolation, thus protecting their immediate and extended environment from becoming infected and reducing the epidemic.
