Vaccination Nation: Children And RSV
1A
NPR
4.3 • 4.5K Ratings
🗓️ 8 December 2022
⏱️ 34 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
RSV is a common seasonal infection among children and poses the greatest threat to newborns and those over 65.
The virus peaked in early November and data from the CDC shows that nationally, cases are trending downward. But in many states, cases are on the upswing, causing children's hospitals to reach capacity.
Many experts warn that travel and gatherings this holiday season may lead to another surge in RSV cases, alongside increases in flu and COVID-19 cases.
We convene a panel to discuss the phenomenon and unpack the data on RSV.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | My name is Tre. I'm going from Mass in Ohio. My name is Shrine and I'm going from |
| 0:11.9 | Roxville, Maryland. Our newborn son about three weeks old contracted RSV. |
| 0:18.4 | My 10 month old recently had RSV and it was very, very terrible. He was in the hospital |
| 0:24.0 | for about five days on oxygen. There's really not much that doctors said they could do for him. |
| 0:29.0 | There was no eating. There's no medication to give him. And the most we could do is try to get as much |
| 0:35.9 | pdolite in him and just give him comfort care. If you've been paying attention to the news lately, |
| 0:41.6 | you've probably heard a lot of this. Hospitals across the country are seeing a spike in patients |
| 0:47.1 | with RSV. It's a respiratory illness that hospitalizes nearly 60,000 children every year under the age |
| 0:54.4 | of five. A former FDA commissioner is sounding the alarm on RSV that is a respiratory virus that |
| 0:59.9 | is suddenly putting a major strain on hospitals across the country. Children with RSV |
| 1:05.0 | overwhelming hospitals nationwide, pushing emergency centers to the brink. While respiratory |
| 1:10.4 | viruses of all kinds are typical this time of year, the recent surge in flu and COVID cases has |
| 1:16.4 | hit hospitals particularly hard. That includes the nation's children's hospitals, many of which |
| 1:21.6 | are reaching capacity as they treat kids infected with respiratory sensitial virus or RSV. |
| 1:27.6 | The Children's Hospital Association and the American Academy of Pediatrics have called the surge |
| 1:31.9 | in RSV cases a public health emergency. Who's most at risk for serious illness with RSV and what |
| 1:38.6 | can parents do to protect their kids? After the break, we put your questions to the experts for the |
| 1:43.3 | latest installment of vaccination nation. We'll be back with more in just a moment. I'm David |
| 1:48.7 | Gara in for Gen White. You're listening to the 1A podcast where we get to the heart of the story. |
| 1:53.6 | Stay with us. |
| 1:58.1 | This message comes from NPR sponsor SmartWool. Our greatest adventures can't be gift-rapped, |
| 2:03.9 | but the SmartWool gear that makes them possible can. From award-winning marino wool base layers to |
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