Mid-Michigan families dealing with RSV earlier in season

LANSING, Mich. (WILX) - Kids are filling up hospital beds in Mid-Michigan with a respiratory illness that can cause difficulty breathing. right now local hospitals are fighting RSV earlier than normal pushing both Covid-19 and Influenza out of first place for most children infected.

Related: Michigan health experts warn of ‘tripledemic’ - COVID, flu, RSV

Just last week, McLaren Health had 70% of its Pediatric Beds taken with RSV or Respiratory Syncytial Virus. Sparrow Hospital said the majority of their pediatric cases are also RSV.

When Jodie Solari, mother of 4-year-old twins Amelia and Annabelle, celebrated her parent’s 50th Anniversary, things couldn’t have gone better. It was a wonderful time with family and her twins had a great time.

However, she noticed they were both sleepy rather earlier around 6:30 p.m.

“The girls were fine and we had a great day,” said Solari. “And then I picked her up and it felt like she was on fire and I was like oh this is not good.”

A fever came on quickly for both girls. Solari took Amelia and Annabelle to the doctor the next day. They told her to give it a few days and see how they were doing. They didn’t get better.

“What was scary is it presented just like a normal kind of cold,” said Solari.

When she took them back to the doctor, Amelia had a severe cough. She was put on steroids to help with breathing.

Solari is one of the many Mid-Michigan parents dealing with RSV.

Dr. Samantha Yamil with Pediatrics at Sparrow Hospital says she’s not sure why the RSV season seems to be starting hard too early. Typically, the season starts at the end of fall and goes through winter. We’re already one month in.

Dr. Yamil says to look out for symptoms that include coughing, runny nose and fever. For kids under two it can cause a lot of breathing problems which is why parents should pay attention to how their child is breathing. Big belly movements when breathing (sucking in belly between the ribs) or flaring nostrils are a sign breathing is an issue. Severe hydration is also a major concern.

“If babies are only having one or two wet diapers a day or older kids aren’t eating or drinking, that’s a sign they can start to get dehydrated and they need to see their doctor,” said Dr. Yamil.

Solari’s twins made a full recovery in time for Halloween. Now, she’s encouraging other parents to be cautious and “trust their gut.”

If your child is sick with respiratory symptoms it’s best to get tested to rule out Influenza and COVID. There is currently no vaccine for RSV.

More: Health news

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