NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Pediatric cases of a respiratory illness known as RSV are rising in 33 states and Nashville is seeing an increase.
It's an urgent new warning tonight for parents of newborns and young children as the cold and flu season will be harder this year.
That includes a respiratory virus known as RSV — which can send children to the hospital.
Four-month-old Orion is a happy baby boy.
His parents knew their son would one day catch a cold but nothing like this.
"He started having projectile vomiting after he wasn't breathing very well. He had a crackling noise when he was breathing," said Elexis Allen.
Allen says her son's symptoms began to get worse.
Doctors in Fort Campbell sent him to Nashville.
"He tested positive for RSV Bronco, pneumonia, bacterial pneumonia, Bronchiolitis and an underlying lung disease that they’re not sure he has yet."
Hospitals across the country have reported a surge in RSV cases in the past few weeks.
"I've just been praying a lot more. I’ve been hoping and praying that I can trade places with him if possible," Allen said.
RSV is the common cause of the common cold and has many of the same symptoms, but in babies, it can attack the lungs.
Symptoms include coughing, wheezing, runny nose and decreased appetite. It's transmitted through direct contact.
RSV infections typically occur during late fall, winter, and early spring, according to the Centers of Disease Control.
"We're in uncharted territory with RSV this year and it's just an atypical early season for us and we don't know if that's going to be sustained or if it's going to peak and drop," said Dr. James Antoon with Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt.
"Last year, we saw a summer surge of RSV for the first time and now we're seeing this early RSV season this year."
There's no vaccine or antiviral medicine to treat RSV.
Antoon says prevention is the best medicine, such as washing hands and wearing masks when sick.
"There's a large focus on children because they're at higher risk of having complications from RSV. But the elderly are also at high risk for complications and anybody can get RSV and transmitted. It's just that it's usually a cold with minor symptoms and those who have had RSV before and have immunity to it," Antoon said.
As for the Allen family, they're hopeful their son will pull through fine.
"He still has a long road to recovery, especially going are home with oxygen but we are more than grateful that he's fighting everything perfectly and taking everything so well without any complications to his health," Allen said.
Doctors say because COVID measures work so well in preventing viruses in general, there are a lot of 2 and 3-year-olds who have never been exposed RSV so the virus is playing catch up on those kids as well.
