NHS prepare for a rise in paediatric respiratory infections in young children in the North West

Staff at the Royal Preston Hospital granted our cameras special access to the children's ward. Victoria Grimes reports.

There are fears of a large rise in cases of Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) in young children over the summer.

For most it is a mild condition, but it can make young children seriously ill.

There has been a large reduction in respiratory viral infections other than Covid-19 over the last year due to the pandemic.

What is respiratory syncytial virus and what are the symptoms in children?
Staff at Royal Preston hospital training in RSV Credit: ITV

This means that there is an increasing number of young children who have never been exposed to these common viruses.

Speaking to ITV Granada Reports, Dr Dinakran Rengan from Royal Preston Hospital said: "June was one of the busiest I have ever had as a ward consultant. It was far more than usual I would say.

"Not only the number of patients but the severity was also significant, most of them were quiet unwell."

Public Health England are warning there could be a 20-50% rise in RSV cases and hospital admissions this year.

NHS England started to plan for the potential rise in RSV in April 2021.

Paediatric units brought forward their usual winter planning which will support an increased capacity in terms of beds, workforce and ward supplies.

Divisional Nurse Director Jo Connolly said: "You don't normally see this over the summer months, it's normally something that we see every winter.

"Last winter was particularly quiet which we think was because of the lockdown measures and people not mixing socially."

Jo continued: "These respiratory viruses aren't serious in children, lots of children get them all the time and they do recover well at home.

"There are a small number that come to hospital for hospital treatment so these are the children who are struggling to breathe or not managing to take enough feed - they're the ones that we need to see in hospital."

Staff at Royal Preston Hospital want all parents to know the symptoms and when they should seek medical help.

  • Find out all of the signs and symptoms to look out for here.