What Happens
In healthy children,
(RSV) infections tend to
be mild and resemble a cold. Children who have only upper
symptoms, such as a sore throat or
a runny nose, usually recover in about 10 to 14 days.
Two
different types and many different subtypes (strains) of RSV exist. For this
reason, you cannot have full immunity to the virus and may have many RSV
infections throughout your life. A child's first RSV infection, which almost
always occurs by age 2, usually is the worst. Some
babies and children have an increased risk of
complications from an RSV infection because their
is unable to fight off the virus. In
addition, babies have narrow breathing tubes that can clog easily, making
breathing hard. The most common complications for young children are
and
, which are lower respiratory tract
infections.
Adults older than 65 have an increased risk of
complications following infection with RSV. Pneumonia is a particular risk,
especially if other health problems exist, such as
(COPD) or
.
It may take older adults
longer to recover from RSV infection and its complications than other age
groups.