Daddy Clay: Cold and flu season is on its way.
There's lots of nasty bugs out there.
There is one you need to know about, it goes by the initials RSV.
Come right back to learn more.
[music] Daddy Clay: Today's episode is brought to
you by BabyBjorn and their new baby carrier Miracle.
Same great BabyBjorn design, even greater comfort.
Sarmistha Hauger: RSV stands for Respiratory syncytial virus.
Respiratory syncytial virus is the cause of the very frequent infection in babies and
children actually under the age of five.
The RSV infection is an infection of the upper respiratory and lower respiratory tract.
To a large extent the signs and symptoms of that infection depends on your previous exposure
to it.
It's an interesting infection because you can get infected with it over and over again.
Just because you had it one time, doesn't mean that you can't get again.
The issue is how you respond the first time you get the infection.
RSV infection actually can occur all throughout your lifetime, but certain population, certain
ages are at highest risk.
And for children, most children are infected by age two.
Amongst that there are lots of vulnerable populations and those are especially the children
that are preterm, that can be born after 35 weeks of age of gestation; children with congenital
heart disease; children with chronic lung disease; children with immunosuppression;
certain children sometimes with other factors that can affect their breathing or their lung
function; cardiac function et cetera.
But really the preterm are considered the highest risk for this infection.
And the reason that they are at highest risk of this infection is because of their immune
system, which is so vulnerable, as well as their lung anatomy just hasn't had time to
develop and develop into a more of a functional system by the time this infection can happen.
So children that are at the greatest risk really are those that fall into those groups.
That are born at the time that this virus infects or affects our population, which happens
seasonally.
It happens every year in the winter months.
It usually happens somewhere around November, usually lasts until around March or April.
RSV is an important virus in the winter time for multiple reasons.
It spreads from child to child.
So, hence, children that attend child care centers, day care centers, where there is
other children that may be at risk for RSV.
In addition, children that reside in homes that have smokers, where there are smokers.
It's been shown that smoking is a risk factor for many infections, not just RSV.
Children with other siblings at home who can bring home things may have also a bit of an
increased risk for RSV.
The other thing is that this virus can also be on environmental sources, such as toys.
The first thing you should do if you thought your baby had RSV is take your baby to the
doctor.
It is easily tested for in most situations.
In many situations, the diagnosis can be given to you within a few hours.
Hospitalization is not always necessary.
We reserve hospitalizations really for the sickest babies; the babies that are either
have underlying problems that I mentioned or are already in trouble with breathing difficulty,
low oxygen levels.
[music] Dr. Hauger: The question of trying to prevent
this infection is a very important one, because it really is one of the few viral infections
that we can do something about to prevent.
There is a substance which is an antibody response against this virus and this substance
is called Synagis.
It is given annually in our country.
It is given to babies that are vulnerable or at highest risk and it is given in usually
five doses.
The question was what can you do as a parent if you feel that your child should qualify
for this substance and you do not involve insurance company?
I think your greatest advocate really is your doctor.
Your doctor should determine whether your child falls into those high risk criteria.
It is a very expensive resource and there can be times when the physicians can go to
back for their patients.
All insurance companies have people that you can speak with and explain your issues but
your physician should be your greatest advocate for that.
The Centers for Disease Control always has good patient education information about various
infections and RSV is definitely one of those.
The Centers for Disease Control is one good site to get seasonal, epidemiological updates
as well as some practical things to do to care for your child, et cetera.
American Academy of Pediatrics also has a very good website.
Daddy Clay: I know a little bit about RSV.
My oldest was a premature baby and he took Synagis shots for the first 18 months of life.
It protected him very effectively from the disease.
Of course, when he went of his shots he contracted RSV and ended up in the hospital.
It was New Years' eve of 1999.
That's why we spent Y2K in the hospital with my son, but by that time he was big, robust
and healthy.
He was able to manage RSV without having any tragic circumstances.
If you've got a vulnerable child, talk to your doctor; learn more about RSV and Synagis.
That's all for us this week, here in the lab.