The end of the RS epidemic is in sight. “The peak is really over,” pediatrician Karóly Illy tells NU.nl. In December, the children’s intensive care units were still full and the situation was “catastrophic”. There’s also a promising cure for the virus on the way.
“The number of adults and children with the RS virus continues to decrease,” says Illy, who is also president of the Dutch Pediatric Association (NVK).
What is the RS virus?
The RS virus is a cold virus that mainly leads to coughing and cold complaints in most children. Some young children become very ill and have to be hospitalized. Very occasionally, babies die from the virus.
From 560 to 104 cases per week
The RIVM figures also show that the new number of cases has been falling since the beginning of January. “But we have not yet returned to the low level of September”, specifies the RIVM.
Currently, 104 people (adults and children) test positive for the RS virus every week. At the end of December, there were still 560 per week. This means fewer children are infected with the virus, so beds are free again in previously full children’s intensive care units.
Anyone can get the RS virus, but adults are much less likely to end up in hospital. Young children, the elderly, or adults with illness or reduced resistance can become seriously ill due to infection with the virus.
Normally the peak is in January and the epidemic dies out in March. But this year, the peak came much earlier. “Now everything is a month earlier. So we’re almost done,” says Illy. At the end of January, 22 children were still hospitalized with a respiratory infection caused by the RS virus.
Highest spike in years, but no major issues
In December, there was a high spike in the number of RS virus infections, so there was great concern. After all, there have been too few nurses for years, including in children’s intensive care units.
Most RS virus patients are children. To give them all a place, extra beds have been installed. Hospitals also called each other to see if there were beds available in children’s intensive care units.
Yet despite the high spike, according to Illy, there were no real problems. “Of course the pressure on care was already strong, but there was no question of moving patients abroad. »
RS virus struck earlier due to low resistance due to COVID-19
According to Illy, the early spread of the RS virus can probably be explained by the corona pandemic. Since there was much less human contact at the start of the pandemic, other viruses had little chance of spreading.
“As a result, society’s resistance to the RS virus was very low,” says the pediatrician. “So the RS virus took its chance earlier. There can be several explanations. Scientific research is done all over the world.
The RS virus spreads every year, but in December 2022 the number of positive cases was significantly higher than in previous years.
A promising drug against the RS virus could soon be on the market
A promising drug against the RS virus could soon be on the market. Children under the age of one will especially benefit. The drug should prevent babies from becoming seriously ill or dying from RS virus infection.
This is the drug Nirsevimab. It’s an antibody, that one discover by researchers at UMC Amsterdam. The European Medicines Agency EMA has given a positive opinion for its use in Europe.
