Dr. Dang Thi Thuy, Head of the Department of Pediatrics – Central Tropical Diseases Hospital, said that respiratory infections caused by RSV flare up strongly in the winter-spring and when the weather changes from spring to summer.
RSV infection can cause a variety of clinical syndromes, ranging from mild cold-like symptoms to manifestations of upper respiratory tract infection, bronchiolitis, pneumonia, asthma exacerbations, and wheezing. due to virus.
In infants and young children, RSV can cause severe bronchiolitis and can lead to death.
Recently, at the Department of Pediatrics, the Central Tropical Diseases Hospital just received a 2-month-old baby from Thanh Hoa province.
Caring for pediatric patients with respiratory infections caused by RSV virus at the Central Tropical Diseases Hospital. BVCC photo
When admitted to the hospital, the patient was diagnosed with severe pneumonia following respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection and severe respiratory failure requiring mechanical ventilation. The patient is a premature baby (35 weeks). Before entering the Pediatrics Department, the patient was treated for pneumonia at Thanh Hoa Provincial General Hospital for 11 days and was stable and discharged.
However, after 2 days of discharge from the hospital, the patient developed a wheezing cough, went to the doctor and did tests showing that the patient was infected with respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and was transferred to the Department of Pediatrics – Central Hospital of Tropical Diseases. naughty.
According to Dr. Dang Thi Thuy, Head of the Department of Pediatrics – Central Tropical Diseases Hospital, said: “Even though the baby arrived early, with the condition of premature birth combined with recurrent respiratory infections due to previous infections, the disease progressed. The baby develops faster and gets more severe. The baby now has to be on a ventilator.”
According to Dr. Thuy, like many other respiratory viruses, RSV can be transmitted from sick person to healthy person through:
• Contamination by droplets containing RSV virus released from sick people through coughing or sneezing into the eyes, nose, and mouth.
• Indirect contact with contaminated surfaces containing the virus or clothes or objects of an infected person, or the patient’s hands and then touching the eyes, nose, or mouth.
• When children come into direct contact with the secretions of a person infected with RSV through kissing or feeding…
“Subjects infected with RSV at risk of severe disease progression include: Premature infants; Newborns (under 6 months old); Children under 2 years old with congenital heart or lung disease; Children with weakened immune systems ; Elderly people, especially people aged 65 and over.
People with asthma, congestive heart failure, chronic respiratory diseases, especially chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD); People with immunodeficiency, organ transplant recipients, leukemia or HIV/AIDS”, Dr. Thuy commented.
To limit RSV infection, Dr. Thuy recommends that people and child caregivers need to take the following measures:
– Instruct children to wash their hands regularly with soap and clean water for at least 20 seconds, or use quick hand sanitizer. Parents and adults need to wash their hands before preparing food and feeding children, before and after taking care of other sick children…
– Avoid touching your eyes, nose and mouth with unwashed hands.
– Avoid close contact with sick people or sharing cups or eating utensils with people who have cold-like symptoms.
– Cover your mouth and nose when coughing and sneezing.
– Clean and disinfect surfaces and objects that people frequently touch such as toys, doorknobs, and mobile devices…
– When children are sick, they should be isolated and cared for at home to avoid spreading infection to the public.
“When parents see that their children have signs of a respiratory infection, they should immediately take them to a medical facility for timely advice and treatment from a doctor,” Dr. Thuy recommended.