CS Mott Children’s Hospital in Michigan has been overwhelmed with RSV cases

A Michigan children’s hospital has reached capacity amid a surge in cases linked to respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).

CS Mott Children’s Hospital in Ann Arbor has treated 270 RSV cases since September, compared to 183 in the same period last year, according to a hospital spokesman.

“I worked in children’s hospitals [almost] 30 years and I’ve never seen anything like it related to RSV — or really anything else,” Luanne Thomas Ewald, chief operating officer of CS Mott and Von Voigtlander Women’s Hospital, told The Post.

RSV is a common respiratory virus that causes cold-like symptoms, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, with most people exposed to it by the age of 2.

While most adults recover in a week or two, RSV can be serious and even life-threatening for infants, young children, and the elderly.

According to the CDC, between 100 and 500 children under the age of 5 die from the virus each year. A 6-year-old boy in Macomb County, Michigan died this month from RSV.

Thomas Ewald said the surge in RSV cases is due to young children who have been isolated due to quarantine restrictions during the pandemic and have therefore not developed strong immune systems.

Hospitals across Michigan and the rest of the country are reporting being completely full due to the early and large number of RSV cases, Thomas Ewald said, and many are preparing for the added impact of pediatric flu and COVID-19 cases.

“If the majority of [the state’s] Children’s hospitals are already full, of course we are very concerned,” she said. “We’re just beginning to see the flu coming into the ER, and that hasn’t peaked either.”

RSV cases nationwide rose to 8,597 in the week ended November 5, up from 5,872 in the week ended October 1, the CDC’s latest data. In the same period last year, there were 4,512 cases.

Thomas Ewald recommended parents to see their pediatrician first before contacting the emergency room if they have any concerns. She also recommended that families get their children vaccinated against COVID-19 and the flu and wash their hands.