12/09/2022
It's a soupy mix of viruses out there at the moment. Look after yourself and others.
Have you or your kids developed flu-like symptoms this season but tested negative for the flu, COVID-19, and RSV (respiratory syncytial virus)?
Well, that’s not a huge surprise! There are MANY viral pathogens that can cause upper respiratory infections (URI) and illness in humans.
Indeed, acute respiratory illnesses are the most frequent cause of illness in humans, and account for about one-fifth of all pediatric deaths worldwide. Many people don’t realize the vast diversity of pathogens that can cause respiratory illnesses.
These include the influenza viruses, SARS-CoV-2, and RSV, but also include the human coronaviruses (which cause many of our ‘colds’) such as 229E, NL63, OC43, and HKU1, rhinoviruses, adenoviruses, metapneumoviruses, bocaviruses, enteroviruses, and parainfluenza viruses.
Most of these cause illnesses that share many symptom similarities and can often be mistaken for each other. These can include fever, fatigue, headache, runny nose, congestion, cough, and more.
Most of these viruses do not currently have vaccines available – but you can help protect against the ones that do – influenza and COVID-19 – by getting vaccinated.
About 15% of upper respiratory illnesses are caused by bacterial infections including Streptococcus and Pneumococcus bacteria. These can be treated with antibiotics. Viral infections cannot though. There are some antivirals that can help reduce illness severity in the case of influenza and COVID-19, but most treatment when someone is ill is focused on alleviating symptoms.
The best way to help prevent ALL of these are the same: wearing masks to reduce the spread of infected respiratory droplets, practice good hygiene (especially hand hygiene), and limiting interactions with others if you or they are sick.
Sources:
Sources:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7149556/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK532961/ #:~:text=The%20most%20common%20virus%20is,of%20sudden%20onset%20pharyngitis%20presentations.
https://www.chop.edu/conditions-diseases/upper-respiratory-infection-uri-or-common-cold #:~:text=An%20upper%20respiratory%20infection%20(URI)%2C%20also%20known%20as%20the,will%20suffer%20one%20billion%20colds.
https://doh.sd.gov/diseases/infectious/diseasefacts/viral-respiratory.aspx
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK532961/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3427559/
https://viralzone.expasy.org/678
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2021.672026/full
https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/general-information.html
https://www.cdc.gov/flu/symptoms/symptoms.htm
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/14618637/ #:~:text=Recent%20estimates%20from%20the%20World,%2C%20mainly%20pneumonia%2C%20each%20year.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35598608/
https://www.thelancet.com/journals/eclinm/article/PIIS2589-5370(21)00266-2/fulltext
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https://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/yellowbook/2020/posttravel-evaluation/respiratory-infections
