NBC Nightly News: Double Virus Threat for Young Children

By Katie Beck

When one-year-old Nora spiked a fever of 102 in June, mom Lacy Greene worried she'd caught COVID.

"It usually is the first thing that comes to mind any time she's running a fever, because that's just the world we live in," said Greene.

Nora tested negative for COVID but positive for RSV, Respiratory Syncytial Virus, which presents similar cold-like symptoms. Most of us contract it before two-years-old and recover in one to two weeks, but it can be much more severe for infants and the elderly. 

"We're having this huge RSV surge in the summertime. Typically, the peak is sometime in December or January," said Dr. Angela Myers, Division Director of Infectious Diseases at Children's Mercy Kansas City. 

The summer surge of RSV is a compound fracture for hospitals nationwide. Many already battling rising COVID cases in pediatric units. At Children's Mercy in Kansas City..

"Over 300 COVID-19 and over 300 RSV cases with a vertical incline over the last two weeks," said Dr. Myers.

Far fewer have been hospitalized, but doctors say watch for symptoms and test for both. RSV symptoms include a runny nose, coughing, sneezing and fever.

Watch the broadcast via NBC Nightly News

Learn more about RSV from a Children's Mercy expert

Learn more about the COVID-19 Vaccine at Children's Mercy