Source: My Central Jersey.com
Emergency rooms and hospital pediatric units across New Jersey have seen a surge in the number of children being brought in with respiratory illnesses including influenza, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and COVID in recent weeks, hospitals are reporting.
Having dubbed it a “tripledemic” for the three leading viruses that began spreading earlier than usual this year, experts expect the situation to get worse as Christmas, New Year’s Eve and other holidays bring more indoor gatherings and travel, which typically increase the risk of transmission.
Both the number of sick children and the severity of their illnesses are greater this year, after two seasons during the height of the COVID pandemic when many kids were not getting as sick. Back then they were still wearing masks indoors and not socializing as much, and consequently they did not build up natural immunity, said Dr. Harpreet Pall, chair of pediatrics at Hackensack Meridian School of Medicine in Nutley.
“We’re seeing a lot of younger kids who have never been exposed before to these viruses coming in very sick,” he said.
The flu, which public health officials had warned would likely be highly transmissible this season, has been driving the surge in emergency room visits in recent weeks, according to a report released last week by the New Jersey Hospital Association.
RSV, a virus that can produce heavy cold-like symptoms, has been responsible for more hospitalizations of children than flu. Although children are still getting sick from COVID, the numbers are much lower compared with other viruses, Pall said.
Nationwide, hospitalizations for flu nearly doubled during the week after Thanksgiving, compared with the prior week. Many of New Jersey’s 71 hospitals have already added beds to their pediatric units. The upcoming winter months will “test the health care system’s capacity and resiliency,” said Cathy Bennett, CEO of the New Jersey Hospital Association.
About 50% of New Jersey children have received a flu vaccine this season, a much higher rate than adults, at 25%, according to federal data. About 7% of New Jerseyans under 18 had gotten a bivalent COVID booster shot as of last week, said Nancy Kearney, a spokeswoman for the state Health Department.
This year’s flu vaccine appears to be a good match to the virus type that is circulating, said Dr. Sandra Fryhofer, board chair of the American Medical Association and an internal-medicine specialist in Atlanta. She urged people to get vaccinated, noting that it takes two weeks for antibodies to develop.
Physicians remind parents and others to stick with basic prevention techniques: Get a flu shot, wash hands frequently, and if a child is sick, keep them home from school.
“We should be gathering for the holidays this year,” Pall said. “The social contact you get from that is really important for everyone’s well-being. We just have to do it safely.”