Post by Nadica (She/Her) on Jun 15, 2024 9:38:52 GMT
Children with RSV during 2022-23 needed more advanced support, study finds - Published June 14, 2024
A study yesterday in JAMA Network Open shows a 70% increase in the number of children requiring advanced respiratory support when hospitalized with respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) during the 2022-23 season. Advanced respiratory support includes high-flow nasal cannula (HFNC), noninvasive ventilation (NIV), or invasive mechanical ventilation (IMV).
The study follows one published earlier this week describing the severity of that 2022-23 RSV season and coincides with a meta-analysis showing good protection of RSV vaccines for both babies and older people.
During the first two pandemic winters, mitigation strategies meant to fight COVID-19 significantly limited and altered the spread of RSV, which typically follows a seasonal peak of activity. Once those measures, including school closures and mask-wearing, were lifted, RSV peaked early and caused more hospitalizations for kids.
"Emerging data suggest that altered virus seasonality and absent early-life virus exposure during the pandemic have shifted the pediatric RSV and bronchiolitis demographic, with older children requiring hospitalization compared with prepandemic seasons," the study authors wrote.