The number of patients with respiratory syncytial virus infection, which can mainly infect children and become severe, is increasing rapidly.
As a result of the spread of the infection last year due to the countermeasures against the new coronavirus, it is believed that many children do not have immunity.
Respiratory syncytial virus infection is a disease that mainly infects young children and causes symptoms similar to colds such as fever and coughing, and may become severe especially when babies under 6 months old or babies with heart disease are infected. there is.
According to the National Institute of Infectious Diseases, about 3,000 pediatric medical institutions nationwide have reported 7,818 patients diagnosed with respiratory syncytial virus infection in the week leading up to the 30th of last month.
Looking at the number of patients in the same period since three years ago when we started to investigate using the same method as we do now, there were 949 patients three years ago, 1028 adults, and 13 patients last year.
The number of patients this year is about eight times that of three years ago and adults, and about 600 times that of last year.
Respiratory syncytial virus is said to infect most children by the age of two, and has spread since the summer in recent years, but last year it did not spread throughout the year.
It is believed that this is due to the fact that more people are wearing masks as a countermeasure against the new coronavirus and that the nursery school is closed.
Experts suspect that the infection is spreading rapidly, as many children of normally immunized age do not have immunity.
Specializing in public health, Yugo Shobukawa, a specially appointed professor at Niigata University Graduate School, said, "The RS virus infection has spread at an unexpected time due to the influence of the new corona, and it is sudden in the field of pediatrics and neonatal care. We are under pressure to respond. With the medical system under pressure in Corona, there are concerns about how to respond if the number of severely ill patients with respiratory syncytial virus infection increases. "
On top of that, he called for an early consultation before the disease became severe, and said, "If your child is feeling suffocated or has no appetite, please consult a medical institution as soon as possible."
In the pediatrics / sick child nursery room in Tokyo
Many patients visit pediatric clinics and nursery rooms for sick children.
Of these, the number of patients complaining of fever and coughing has increased at the pediatrics "Clinic Bambini" in Minato-ku, Tokyo, and since the latter half of last month, about 30 people have been diagnosed with respiratory syncytial virus infection a week. ..
A mother in her thirties, whose second son at the age of six and her eldest daughter at the age of 0 were diagnosed with respiratory syncytial virus infection, said, "I'm having trouble sleeping at night because of my cough and runny nose. Since there are many cases, it is difficult to take measures to prevent it from being transferred to other children, but I want them to get well soon. "
In addition, 3 to 5 patients, who account for more than half of the capacity, are entrusted to the sick child care room attached to this clinic every day.
A mother in her thirties who came to leave a one-year-old boy said, "I'm doing it in a nursery school, so it feels like it. I started to have a fever about three or four days ago, and my coughing became severe. So I'm worried. "
Akifumi Tokita, director of "Clinic Bambini," said, "It's clearly an out-of-season epidemic, and the number of patients has been quite high for the past one or two weeks. It is normal to treat, but if many small children are infected at once and the number of severely ill or hospitalized patients increases like this time, pediatric medical care may be strained, and I am most worried about that point. If you have any symptom of concern, please see the doctor as soon as possible. "