"Virus immature after Corona 19... Out of season such as flu, RSV, etc."

Simultaneous outbreak of 7 respiratory viruses in the US in spring… “Anomaly”

Reexamination of the use of vaccines and therapeutics… “Exposure to other viruses is blocked by preventive measures against COVID-19”

flu vaccination

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(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Shin Jae-woo = After the COVID-19 pandemic, the Washington Post (WP) reported on the 13th (Washington Post) that seasonal viral diseases such as influenza (flu) are widely prevalent in summer rather than winter. local time) reported

According to the report, seven respiratory viruses were detected in respiratory patients who were hospitalized at Yale New Haven Children’s Hospital in Connecticut, USA last month.

When summer approaches, it is very unusual for adenovirus, rhinovirus, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), metapneumovirus, influenza, parainfluenza, and Corona 19 virus to spread at the same time.

“It’s not common at any time of the year, especially in May and June,” said Thomas Murray, associate professor of pediatrics at Yale Medical School. told

RSV is usually prevalent in winter, and rhinoviruses do not worsen symptoms enough to require hospitalization.

In the case of influenza, it seemed to almost disappear in the winter of 2020, the first year in which COVID-19 appeared, and then re-emerged in December of the following year. However, as the omicron mutation spread widely, the number of infections again decreased significantly in January of this year.

What is even more peculiar is that the Yamagata family virus, commonly found in influenza patients, is no longer visible. Yamagata has not been discovered since early 2020, when the COVID-19 epidemic began.

Researchers believe that the virus is either already extinct or is hiding out to attack the immune system while humans are vigilant.

**Respiratory disease in children**

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Hospitals and laboratories are busy devising strategies as seasonal viruses begin to act out of season, the WP said.

Teresa Barton, director of pediatric infectious diseases at the San Antonio School of Public Health in San Antonio, Texas, has proposed continuing the use of the influenza vaccine, usually given in the fall, through March and April of the following year.

He said that the number of influenza patients increased in the spring of this year as in the summer of last year.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), RSV response strategies are being reviewed.

RSV is a disease that hospitalizes over 60,000 children under the age of 5 in the United States each year and causes fatal lung disease in premature or high-risk children.

In the absence of a definitive vaccine, doctors are preventing infection by injecting palivizumab, a monoclonal antibody injection, once a month from November to February to children at high risk for RSV infection. A similar phenomenon is occurring in May and June of this year.

Scientists are studying whether behavioral changes, such as the expansion of telecommuting, wearing masks and social distancing, are the cause of changes in virus activity, and whether COVID-19 is overtaking other viruses with an evolutionary advantage.

Michael Mina, chief executive of digital health platform eMed, said, “As it was during the pandemic, the moment the virus stops its normal activity, nature is out of balance.” “The exceptional measures we have taken have also prevented our exposure to other viruses.”

“If you are exposed to the virus again after a long time, it is difficult to protect yourself, and as the infection penetrates the entire population, an out-of-season epidemic can occur,” he said. “It can be fatal for some individuals.” .

This can happen when people take off their masks and start gathering indoors, he said, stressing that the virus can spread in any season, even when environmental conditions are not optimal, given the low immunity of the population as a whole.