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Every year, when the cold weather sets in, comes an increase in the incidence of bronchiolitis. This disease, which is a first episode of respiratory difficulty associated with a cold in a child under two years of age, is one of the main reasons why young children go to the emergency room.

This year, however, autumn and the first cold days have arrived with the news that the vaccination schedule of Castilla y León has incorporated immunity against the Respiratory Syncytial Virus, whose infection produces the disease commonly known as bronchiolitis. This campaign is aimed at children born on or after March 1, 2023 and will be analyzed later to verify the results as it is the first year of implementation.

This vaccine, which “is not mandatory” because “there is no mandatory vaccine” as explained by Elena Santamar, a pediatrician in Burgos, but she does remember that “they are all recommended.” «We talk about a vaccine but in reality it is not a vaccine as such, it is a monoclonal antibody. The difference with a vaccine is that in the vaccine what is administered is the microorganism so that your immune system generates defenses, while in this case what is administered are the defenses created in the laboratory. This is what is called passive immunization,” says the pediatrician.

Although it is still too early to assess whether these vaccines are helping to make this winter less harsh for the little ones in the house, what is sought is to “prevent serious cases that require hospitalization.” «At the moment we have just started the season and we don’t know how it will end, but from what I see in consultation, the children I have had admitted for bronchiolitis are older, those who are not vaccinated, so, for now, it looks good. », he assures.

In Primary Care, the first door that parents knock on when viruses settle at home, the situation this year is “standard.” «The cold started late, but the colds have started since the cold arrived. With bronchiolitis in small babies it seems that things are better. On the December long weekend, which is traditionally a very bad date, this year the consultation is full, but it is not the same as other years of emergencies, delays of several days, etc. », he explains.

Symptoms of bronchiolitis

Bronchiolitis can begin with symptoms that resemble those of a cold, so to differentiate them you have to look at some details that give it away. «Bronchiolitis usually starts like a normal cold, with cough, runny nose, a little fever or not. The difference is that there begin to be symptoms of respiratory distress, what we call indrawing,” Elena lists.

But what is respiratory difficulty?: “When breathing becomes noticeable on the ribs, the frequency of breathing increases, and other symptoms that parents can see at home, especially if they are very young children, are that they stop eating.” “because of this respiratory difficulty.” The simplest signs to check this is to uncover the child’s chest a little, if when he breathes in he makes so much effort with his muscles that his ribs are marked, or when above the sternum it sinks when he breathes in, it means that there is respiratory difficulty. . You should be alarmed when you see “these signs of respiratory distress” or when “very young children stop wanting to eat.”

With bronchiolitis you have to be very careful when it occurs in very young babies. This disease, which can occur from birth, can lead to admission in children under six weeks old because “they can have apnea pauses” and need more exhaustive monitoring than they can have at home.

Preventive measures to avoid brochiolitis

There are ways to try to prevent a small child or baby from getting sick and suffering from bronchiolitis. We learned most of them during the covid-19 pandemic, the rest involve common sense: “We must avoid contact with people who have cold symptoms (cough, fever, etc.). An older person may say “it’s just a cold,” but we don’t know what virus it is and how it can affect the baby. If you have no choice but to be with these people, the most important thing is to wear a mask, which we got used to wearing during the pandemic and now it seems not so much, wash your hands well and the person who is sick avoid picking up the baby as much as possible. arms”.

The ideal is also to avoid things like “kissing babies’ hands”, always keeping in mind that “a grandmother, whom you see every day, is not the same as a person whom you have not seen in many months.” The best thing is “as far as possible to avoid close contact with the baby if the person has any of these cold symptoms” and have “a lot of common sense.”

2023-12-16 08:20:24
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