The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently warned that respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and mycoplasma pneumonia, or “walking pneumonia,” are on the rise among very young children. Rates are higher than in recent years, and walking pneumonia, caused by bacteria, is affecting babies and young children at unusually early ages. This may herald more seasons of colds and fevers for parents, but experts say it’s actually what they expect to see this year and isn’t cause for concern.

what’s going on

On October 18, CDC warns Rates of walking pneumonia are increasing, especially in preschool-age children. CDC statistics show cases have been increasing among all age groups since March, reaching a peak in August. But the spike was particularly sharp and unusual among toddlers. The rate of children ages 2 to 4 discharged from hospitals with walking pneumonia increased from 1% as of March 31, when mycoplasma season began, to 7.4% as of October 5. Among children ages 5 to 17, the rate increased from 3.6%. increased to 7.4%.

But the RSV season is just getting started. However, in the Southeast, where cases generally begin to increase first, CDC says There are “signs of increased RSV activity.”

Why is it happening?

These trends are certainly notable, but they are not unexpected.

RSV infection rates peaked in mid-December in 2018–2019 and 2019–2020 seasons. But “since COVID we have seen RSV emerge earlier in the year.” Dr. Larry Kociolekassociate professor of pediatric infectious diseases at Northwestern Medicine Feinberg School of Medicine, tells Yahoo Life. This is because babies born during the period when measures to slow the spread of COVID were in place were not exposed to infections such as RSV. These measures are lifted across the US at various times of the year; This means that babies and young children are first exposed to RSV outside of the regular season, and the chain of transmission begins earlier than usual. “this year“The timing is more in line with what we would expect to see in a typical season,” he says.

A similar pattern—infants and toddlers protected from viruses and bacteria by COVID precautions, then suddenly exposed to them—helps explain why walking pneumonia rates this year are much higher than the past two years, especially among very young children. . “We are seeing higher numbers compared to previous seasons, but that’s mostly because in the last few years, post-pandemic, we’ve had less disease among young children.” Dr.Preeti SharmaA pediatric pulmonologist at Children’s Health tells Yahoo Life:

The rise of walking pneumonia in young children, especially those ages 2 to 4, is partly a post-pandemic phenomenon and partly due to toddlers being “exposed to school-age siblings who are bringing these pathogens into their homes,” he adds. Walking pneumonia is highly contagious; It spreads through droplets from coughs and sneezes. Most people do not develop symptoms for two to four weeks after exposure, but they are contagious during this period and until their symptoms improve. Rates of walking pneumonia also tend to increase every few years, explains Sharma. Cases are expected to rise in the U.S. and “this is not an unusual trend,” says Sharma; It just affects slightly younger children than in previous years.

What should we do

The good news is that there are highly effective treatments and preventatives for both infections. RSV It usually causes a mild, cold-like illness in healthy older children and adults, but is the most common reason for hospitalization of infants in the United States. Vaccination in the third trimester of pregnancy. Babies 19 months and younger can now receive vaccines antibody injection to protect them against RSV.

Walking pneumonia “sounds scary because we’re talking about pneumonia,” says Sharma. “But the term ‘walking’ comes from the fact that most children with this condition stand up and walk around.” It also causes cold- or COVID-like symptoms, such as nasal congestion and cough. On its own, it poses little serious risk to children, but “unlike COVID, this is not a new pathogen; we know it’s easy treated with antibiotics“says Sharma. If your child has a cough that doesn’t improve after five to seven days, he recommends seeking medical attention so he can be tested and prescribed medications if he has mycoplasma pneumonia.