UK bracing for surge in sick kids after COVID lockdown lowered immunity to common respiratory virus

close

Video

Dr. Marty Makary on CDC recommending schools continue to use masks

Fox News medical contributor provides insight on ‘Fox News Live.’

A common respiratory virus is potentially on the rise in kids in the United Kingdom because of COVID-19 lockdowns, medical professionals told The Sun. 

The HSJ reported that models show that beginning this fall there could be between 20% and 50% more cases of children needing to be hospitalized from respiratory syncytial virus, otherwise known as RSV, which usually causes mild, cold-like symptoms and can be serious for infants and seniors.

An expert told the HSJ: "There is a concern that children this year have missed out on normal RSV viral exposure. … They would normally be exposed to this but won’t have because of lockdown."

Another expert added: "We may get a big surge of routine respiratory conditions this autumn/winter as most people avoided contact last winter – i.e. not just kids."

GOP MEMBERS PRESS BIDEN, DNI HAINES FOR MORE INFORMATION ON COVID LAB LEAK THEORY

Each year around 30,000 kids are hospitalized due to RSV. 

Common symptoms of RSV infection usually include runny nose, decreased appetite, coughing, sneezing, fever and wheezing. Symptoms usually appear in stages and not all at once. RSV can also cause more severe infections such as bronchiolitis, an inflammation of the small airways in the lung, and pneumonia, an infection of the lungs. It is the most common cause of bronchiolitis and pneumonia in children younger than 1.

Video

CORONAVIRUS: WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

Thanks to an efficient vaccine rollout program, Britain is finally saying goodbye to months of tough lockdown restrictions.

Starting Monday, all restaurants and bars in England can reopen with some precautions in place, as can hotels, theaters and museums. Britons will be able to hug friends and family again, with the easing of social distancing rules that have been in place since the pandemic began.

It’s the biggest step yet to reopen the country following an easing of the crisis blamed for the highest reported COVID-19 toll in Europe.

British health officials have raced to get ahead of the virus – as well as the variant first identified in India, which they say appears to be more transmissible – by vaccinating hundreds of thousands of people a day at hospitals, soccer pitches and churches up and down the country. 

CLICK HERE FOR FULL CORONAVIRUS COVERAGE

Britain reported 2,027 new COVID-19 infections on Saturday as well as a further seven deaths within 28 days of a positive test, Reuters reported.

The official data also showed that 36.32 million people had received their first dose of a COVID-19 vaccine.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.