Viruses Suppressed During COVID-19 Pandemic Now Prevalent Among Children
A slew of viruses mostly suppressed during much of the COVID-19 pandemic are now starting to re-emerge and wreak havoc on children.
Doctors are seeing influenza, the respiratory virus known as RSV, and enterovirus pop up in children this fall, especially in kids under age 3.
Experts from Hennepin Healthcare say people’s immunity to these viruses has waned over the last two and a half years. And now that many are no longer masking or social distancing, they’re seeing a resurgence all at once.
“Every three to four weeks we’re seeing these kids get a new infection, especially those that are in school and in daycare,” said Dr. Stacene Maroushek, a pediatric infectious disease specialist from Hennepin Healthcare. “And of course they infect their parents, parents have to miss work, kids are missing school, the parents are really worried like ‘they’ve been sick all the time,’ so they’re coming into the doctor a little more often as well. And it’s just a bad post-Covid resurgence of virus.”
Doctors from Hennepin Healthcare say fever from a virus is not life-threatening. Ibuprofen and Acetaminophen can lower the fever for up to 6 hours and keep your child comfortable enough to drink fluids to prevent dehydration.
During this surge, doctors urge parents to consult with a nurse first before bringing your child to the hospital.
“We’re really quite full right now, and it may be a long wait time,” Dr. Maroushek said. “And we’re really trying to have parents do some of those comfort measures at home first.”
Meanwhile, the Robbinsdale School District had an average of 669 students reported absent from school each day last week (Nov. 7-11).
Related: Experts: Flu Season Could Be ‘Challenging and Difficult’
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