Illnesses thwarted by COVID are back

Respiratory illnesses are making a big comeback this year, filling emergency rooms with patients and forcing medical professionals to work around the clock.

One reason could be that the COVID-19 pandemic has eased and people feel less pressure to wash their hands, wear masks and stay home when sick.

“It may be because life is going back to pre-pandemic levels, which is an ample opportunity for these respiratory illnesses to circulate and spread easily within the community,” said Anita Kurian, deputy director of the communicable disease division at San Antonio Metropolitan Health District.

“In the past two years, respiratory illnesses were greatly impacted by COVID. NON-COVID illnesses were at a minimum,” she said. “Now, as COVID-19 cases are decreasing, we’re experiencing a resurgence of NONCOVID illnesses.”

Metro Health keeps track of flu-like symptoms — such as coughing or sore throat — at emergency rooms. The pandemic’s impact is staggering when comparing numbers of

flu-like illnesses from early November in 2019, 2021 and 2022. One-week totals dropped from 557 in 2019 to 243 last year, then rose to 2,227 among people ages 64 and younger, according to Metro Health.

For children in particular, there could be an increase of respiratory problems because in the past two years babies were not getting the typical illnesses — and the subsequent resilience against those illnesses — thanks to COVID-19 health precautions, said Jason Bowling, director of hospital epidemiology at University Health.

In a normal year, a child might get the respiratory syncytial virus when they’re around 1 year old or shortly after birth. No child becomes entirely immune to a virus like RSV after contracting it, but there is some partial immunity as a result. So now little ones who never had RSV or a similar virus are more susceptible to getting it.

Early arrival

The rise in sicknesses such as RSV or rhinovirus came earlier than normal this year, according to Metro Health data. The typical cold and flu season is between late December and early February.

“It’s unusual we’re seeing this (increase) so high so early,” Bowling said. “Nationally, we are seeing pediatric ICUS fill with children and reach capacity. Even in the San Antonio area, capacity is high right now, and people showing up to the pediatric ER is higher for all facilities.”

While adults can contract RSV, children are the most susceptible. Symptoms typically include a runny nose, decrease in appetite, coughing, wheezing and, in serious cases, headaches, confusion and difficulty breathing.

Now, as numbers spike in San Antonio, doctors advise people to take precautions. It’s not too late to get the most updated vaccines for the flu and COVID-19. Children as young as 6 months can be protected from four strains of flu. People also should stay home if they are sick.

For people who get sick but don’t have severe symptoms, it’s still best for them to stay home so they won’t pass the illness on to someone who is more vulnerable, Bowling said.

“If you take care of yourself and stay healthy, you’ll keep the hospitals from overflowing,” Bowling said. “We’re not at a crisis point in San Antonio yet, but it’s busy and we’re cautious.”