Rsv

Updated on November 15, 2008
M.R. asks from Greenfield, IN
11 answers

My daughter has been sick for 12 days now. I took her to the doctor yesterday and they said that they think she has RSV. The test came back negative but the doctor said that it just means she is not contagious anymore. I was just wondering if anyone else has dealt with this and how long it takes to get over it. She is on 2 cough syrups and an antibiotic (for a ear infection). He said that there is really no way of treating it and that it just has to run its course. She is so grumpy though and she won't eat anything. I will take any advice!

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So What Happened?

Thanks for all of the advice. We are on day 14 now and although she still has a cough and runny nose, I do see a big improvement! We just kept her on the cough syrups and her antibiotic. We even gave her baths in the vapor bath. I HOPE SHE NEVER GETS THIS AGAIN!!!!!!!!!

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S.T.

answers from Indianapolis on

RSV is basically a cold virus that children have a hard time fighting off. Since she has been sick for 12 days you are probably close to the end. Since it is a virus there is no treatment to get rid of it, you can just treat the symptoms like you are. Try a humidifier in her room, the sudacare plug in can also be helpful. Hope that helps some.

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K.M.

answers from Indianapolis on

Hi I am a respiratory therapist. Your doctor is right. It has to run it's coarse. Luckily, it sounds like you are at the end of it. There is a light at the end of the tunnel. My son was diagnosed with RSV today and we are fighting the same battle. They just don't feel good so the grumpiness will go away with time. As for the not eating. With RSV they are so congested and have drainage going into their little tummies from their sinuses that their tummy's feel full. Giving her pedialyte as well as whatever she will eat will help. Fluids help flush the system so water or pedialyte are good flushers! Good luck!

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L.P.

answers from Louisville on

My daugther had RSV at 11 weeks old and was in the hospital for 5 days. I have a healthcare background so I have a lot of information on the topic. It is a virus so there basically is no cure, just treatments such as antibiotics and breathing treatments. But, RSV usually only occurs in infants under the age of 1, so it is doubtful your daughter has/had it if she is already 2. So, she probably just has a mild case of pneumonia or bronchitis, both of which just have to run their course. She is already on an antibiotic which will take care of the pneumonia if she has any and the cough syrup will take care of any bronchitis. But, it basically does just have to run it's course. It could still be a couple more weeks before she is completely back to herself. Just make sure she gets fluids and rest, that is basically all you can do.

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C.J.

answers from Indianapolis on

M.,
My daughter will be two next month. At four months, she was diagnosed with RSV. Her pediatrician didn't catch it soon enough and me being a first-time mom had no clue. Her breathing became serious weezing so I took her to the hospital the same night after she had seen the doctor. She ended up in critical care for 3 days. My daughter was given a nebulizer with Albuterol for breathing treatments. The albuterol is used mostly, I think, to keep open her bronchial tubes. She has a cold right now and I am giving her a breathing treatment once per night just as a precaution. She was also diagnosed with pnemonia at the same time. My advice, given I am not a doctor, is to keep giving her the medicine, but watch her breathing and make sure it is not strained or a weezing type. If it becomes worse or you think the medicine is not working, I would take her back to the doctor or the the emergency room. Good luck to you. I hope she gets better real soon. I know how exhausting it must be and how miserable she must feel. God bless you and your family and have a happy holiday season!

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K.U.

answers from Lexington on

My daughter had a cold that seemed to keep getting worse when she was about 4 or 5 months, after taking her to the doctor she was diagnosed with RSV, they gave me a prescription for an antibiotic but said only to fill it if she's not getting better in a few days, she was over it in no time. I am suprised that your 2 year old has it, I was under the impression it was more for premies and newborns, once their airways were a little larger it wouldn't affect them!?! Good luck!

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C.C.

answers from Milwaukee on

My son was diagnosed with RSV when he was about 3 months old.(He is now 3 years old.) I had taken him to the emergency room at Children's Hospital in WI and they measured his oxygen level and he was well below normal. They immediately started him on albuterol treatments and he was required to stay in the hospital until his oxygen levels came back to normal which only took the one night in the hospital. My son was not born early (in fact he was induced after being 8 days late and was born 9 lbs. 11 oz.). The treatments helped him to be able to sleep and eat a little more which helped me out tremendously. It didn't take long before he was feeling well again. But almost every time he got sick that first year (and only during that first year), he ended up needing the albuterol treatments.

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K.O.

answers from Louisville on

Okay, I am a little confused my your doctor's comments. I am not an expert but I would think RSV would show up whether she was "contagious" or not. The fact she is still having symptoms concerns me. My son was sick for 10 days before I took him to the doctor as the nurses kept telling me it was probably viral. When I took him in they put him on an antibiotic and said to bring him back two days later if no improvement. So, I did...they did a chest xray and then next thing I know we were headed to the hospital and were admitted for 5 full days. He ended up having a rare bacterial infection that only IV antibiotics could treat. They found this out through a mucus culture. His chest xray showed "atypical pneumonia." Have they done a mucus culture on your daughter? This would be your answer to whether this is viral or bacterial. I would give it just another day or so for the antibiotic to work and if no improvement, I would insist on more tests and chest xray if she hasn't had one done yet. Bottom line, you know your daughter the best and if she doesn't get better just don't "wait" it out, get some answers.

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A.H.

answers from Kokomo on

I've dealt with a lot of RSV issues in my family and it has taken 1 to 2 weeks to get over it. Since your daughter is 2, she is at an age where she is susceptible to RSV. She could have gotten RSV which led to a secondary infection (ear infection) which is why she has been so sick for so long. I'm sure if you keep up with the antibiotics and cough medicine, this will pass shortly. Make sure to give her pedialyte or gatorade to restore electrolytes that are lost during illness to prevent dehydration. If you doctor suspected she had RSV, he should have given her an oral steroid to assist with respiratory problems. You said that there were to cough meds, so I am assuming that is what he has done. When my son had it, he wouldn't eat anything except ice cream, popcicles, and pudding. But definately give her plenty of fluids so she doesn't dehydrate since she is not eating. I hope this helps. Good luck.

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S.

answers from Louisville on

My son had bronchiolitis a little over a month ago. He's almost 3, so while it is rare in older childen--it does happen, he wasn't a preemie and didn't get sick much as a baby. He wasn't tested for RSV, although that is often what causes it. My experience was a bit more like Carrie's. My son was on a nebulizer for a good part of it. Extreme difficulty in breathing--I stayed up counting his respirations just making sure he was still breathing for a couple of nights. I sure hope your daughter's hasn't been THAT bad.

His ran its course in just over two weeks. He was grumpy and clingy the whole time, ate very little--just like you're talking about. I feel for you, that was not an easy time in our house--I was completely exhausted. It was also the scariest experience I've had as a mother thus far.

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M.H.

answers from Lexington on

M.
My 12 year old went through the same thing when she was younger and she would not eat a bite, unless it was chicken noodle soup and I told her it would make her better. Her doctor told me to avoid giving her milk or any dairy products or dark colored sodas. I did find that JELLO water was the best thing for her to drink she liked it and of course thought she was top dog cause mommy made it just for her and no one else in the family. Try to get her to eat some jello or even pediasure chocolate flavored, my daughter loved that stuff and still does when she is ill, now when she is ill I make it as a milkshake for her and all I had to do was blend it with lots of ice so it was more like an ICEE and kids love ICEES.....Best humidifier I found was the KAH hot humidifier, it added warm air with a mixture of vicks vapor rub liquid in the air to help keep her clear.
Good Luck and Happy New Year

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A.W.

answers from Lafayette on

OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Ok, I learned this the hard way...forget your doctor cause he's a dolt...take the child to Riley's hospital where they will do a chest x-ray to rule out things such as pnemonia (the hospitals in Lafayette are to lazy to do a chest x-ray...hmmm...come to think of it, the doctors in Lafayette are to lazy as well). Riley's will also do an RSV test to make sure it's RSV before they diagnose a kid with RSV. If your child tests posative for RSV, they will get you a nebulizer and your child will be on breathing treatments. I have to warn you...most kids with RSV usually end up being asthmatic. Now...one more thing...at 2 years old, I think she's to old to have RSV. My son was diagnosed with RSV as a newborn last winter. Now he's 14 months and he doesn't have RSV, he has asthma and after a really long night at Riley's (they had to observe and monitor him to make sure his blood oxygen saturation was stable as he had dipped down to a dangerous level and they had put him on oxygen to get him back up), they found that he had pnemonia. At his age, instead of RSV, he's going to wind up with upper respiratory infections that trigger his asthma.

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