RSV, pneumonia cases are surging among kids in Fort Worth, leaving ERs at capacity
Cases of respiratory syncytial virus and mycoplasma pneumonia are rising in kids in the Fort Worth area, leaving hundreds sick and seeking medical care.
The sudden spike in cases has left the emergency room at Cook Children’s Medical Center in Fort Worth near capacity in recent days, the health network said in a statement. At least 572 children were treated in the Cook Children’s emergency room on Tuesday, and another 842 were treated at the health network’s urgent care centers.
“We’ve seen over 1,100 patients in the last two days and through the ER, so it’s been very difficult for us to manage this volume all at once,” Dr. Taylor Louden, the medical director for emergency services at Cook Children’s, said in a statement.
The spread of the diseases marks the start of respiratory virus season in the Metroplex, although other respiratory viruses like the flu and COVID-19 have yet to increase throughout the region.
Respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, is a typically seasonal virus that is most worrisome in children under 5, and particularly in infants. It is the he most common cause of pneumonia and inflammation of small airways in the lungs for infants, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The virus typically peaks in mid-December but is spreading earlier this year.
There are RSV vaccines available for young children and pregnant women, which can protect kids when they are most vulnerable to the virus.
The other culprit behind crowded emergency rooms is mycoplasma pneumonia, also known as walking pneumonia. The illness is caused by a bacteria. In most adults, it causes relatively mild cases. But in kids it can result in a bad cough and rashes around the eyes and mouth.
No Cook Children’s doctors were available for interviews to discuss the surge in cases, but in a statement the health network urged families to only seek emergency care if a child is having difficulty breathing or has other serious symptoms.
Symptoms like a low-grade fever, dry cough, sore throat, and minor aches can be handled by a child’s regular physician, according to the health network.
