Massive Surge in RSV Across U.S. and Canada! What’s to Blame?

Hospital beds are filling up across the United States and Canada due to a surge in RSV (respiratory syncytial virus) cases.

Breaking: Unprecedented surge in Pediatric RSV cases across USA.

— Don Winslow (@donwinslow) October 21, 2022

The United States is dealing with a unique season of respiratory virus transmission: Flu cases are on the rise earlier than usual, and RSV case rates are extra high, even after an "unprecedented" early surge this summer. https://t.co/v7DtbHrzRC

— AccuWeather (@accuweather) October 29, 2022

Children's Hospital Faces Worst RSV Surge in 25 Years

An estimate 75% of the 40,000 children's hospital beds in the U.S. are currently full. https://t.co/YKBuspJMpz

— Jess (@MeetJess) October 25, 2022

From TODAY:

In recent weeks, the United States has seen an alarming surge in respiratory illness among children — and COVID-19 is not to blame. Common respiratory viruses, particularly RSV (respiratory syncytial virus), are causing an unusually high number of cases and hospitalizations among kids, putting a strain on children’s hospitals and even causing some to reach capacity. An estimate 75% of the 40,000 children’s hospital beds in the U.S. are currently full.

One hospital, Connecticut Children’s, is so flooded with cases of RSV that staff is exploring using temporary units on the hospital lawn to manage patients and discussing plans to use auxiliary resources through the state and National Guard.

“We saw a little bit of (RSV) last year, but this dramatic increase in cases of RSV in September and October is not that something we have seen before historically,” Dr. Juan Salazar, executive vice president and physician-in-chief at Connecticut Children’s, told TODAY.

“I’ve been doing this for 25 years at Connecticut Children’s and in practice for over 30 years. … At least in the hospitals that I worked with, I’ve never seen this level of rapid transmission and the need for hospitalization in kids,” Salazar said.

CBS News reported on the RSV surge in Chicago-area children’s hospitals:

Several area hospitals are struggling to keep up with the number of children hospitalized with respiratory and other viruses.

CBS 2’s Jackie Kostek went to Comer Children’s Hospital where pediatric beds have been full for 47 days. Hospital leaders said this respiratory virus season hit earlier, is stronger and involves multiple illnesses.

“He woke up in the middle of the night kind sort of gasping for air,” said Tristan Lopez, a local mother of twin boys born prematurely.

She knows the danger of RSV and other respiratory viruses. CBS 2 spoke to the family earlier this month.

“Diego has had pneumonia three times,” Lopez said. “Alex has actually been admitted into the hospital more than six times due to complications from probably RSV and other respiratory viruses.”

As cases continue to surge in Chicago and across the country, hospitals are feeling the strain. Leaders at Comer Children’s Hospital sent a memo to the entire University of Chicago Medial Center system on Thursday laying out the unprecedented situation: the number of children needing care is outpacing what the hospital experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic and any previous respiratory season.

As the Los Angeles Times noted, one San Diego school had roughly 40% of its students absent:

Alarming surges of respiratory illness at a San Diego high school and the region’s only children’s hospital are strong evidence that a fierce flu season has arrived early this year.

About 1,000 of the 2,600 students at Patrick Henry High School in San Carlos were absent Wednesday, with the majority said to have gotten sick in the week after homecoming weekend. Hundreds of them, school officials told parents in a notice, tested negative for COVID-19 , causing public health officials to say they suspect the unprecedented outbreak was caused by the flu. Respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, could also be playing a role.

Dr. Cameron Kaiser, a deputy public health officer for San Diego County, said his office is monitoring the outbreak due to its sheer size. No school has come close to seeing 40% of its student body call out sick during the COVID-19 pandemic.

What could be to blame for this unprecedented RSV surge?

Maybe, just maybe, it has something to do with an experimental shot introduced to the global population?

The folks at The Highwire did some digging and found critical evidence against the shots.

And they did so utilizing FDA documents from Pfizer and Moderna’s clinical trials.

Watch via Rumble courtesy of Red Voice Media:

“Within 28 days after vaccination, some respiratory tract-related infections were reported with greater frequency in the mRNA-1273 group than in the placebo group. Events of pneumonia were reported by 0.3% and 0% 0f mRNA-1273 and placebo recipients, respectively. Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection was reported by 0.4% and <0.1% of mRNA-1273 and placebo recipients, respectively,” The Highwire said in their report.

“So FOUR TIMES THE AMOUNT OF RSV in the vaccinated group compared to the unvaccinated group that hadn’t received it,” Del Bigtree noted.

“So you’re giving a shot to kids that’s INCREASING their upper respiratory tract infections with RSV quite a bit, actually,” Jefferey Jaxen observed.