Respiratory Infection In Young Children On The Rise Earlier Than Usual

BOSTON (CBS) - A respiratory illness that is commonly seen in young children in the winter is making an early appearance this year and some kids can get pretty sick from it.

RSV, or respiratory syncytial virus, typically causes cold symptoms like runny nose and cough in older children but can cause wheezing and trouble breathing in babies.

Hospitals and clinics, including mine, have been seeing more kids with RSV this summer, which is really unusual. Most recover fine at home, but some need to be hospitalized which poses a problem for regions of the country also seeing a surge of children hospitalized with COVID.

Some believe children may be more vulnerable to viruses right now because they weren't exposed to as many germs during the lockdown.

ONE WEEK RECOVERY

A new study finds that most kids recover from COVID-19 within a week.

Researchers in the U.K. found while most kids recover within a week, about four-percent have symptoms lasting more than a month and almost two-percent of children with COVID-19 have symptoms that last eight weeks or longer.