SALT LAKE CITY — Cases of Respiratory Syncytial Virus, also known as RSV, continue to rise after a summertime outbreak with flu season just around the corner.
According to Primary Children’s Hospital physician Dr. Per Gesteland, the upward trajectory of the virus is expected to continue for the foreseeable future.
“How big it’ll get or how bad it’ll be, we’ll see,” he said.
RSV is a more common kind of respiratory virus that usually causes mild, cold-like symptoms according to the CDC. While most people recover in a week or two, the illness can be more serious among infants and older adults.
It is the most common cause of bronchiolitis, where the small airways of the lung become inflamed, and pneumonia in children younger than one in the United States.
“It’s not just a common cold, it affects certain populations more than others,” said Dr. Gestaland. “The vast majority of people do just fine and get through it.”
“It can be really annoying, especially if you have to wind up in the hospital and be here for a few days.”
He also believes as precautions made for the COVID-19 virus wind down, it means those same precautions that helped keep RSV rates down will be going away as well.
“It’s not surprising that RSV has come back circulating in our communities again,” he said. “Last year we saw a very unusual summertime outbreak.”
Right now RSV is the only virus that is in moderate transmission, aside from COVID-19, all others are low or non-existent.
“You’re starting a little closer to the normal time but it’s still pretty unusual to see RSV start taking off in October,” he said.
