RSV bronchiolitis season 2021 has arrived, so be prepared!

The emergence of the Covid-19 pandemic led to non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) to reduce the spread of the virus, including handwashing and social distancing.
Hussein and his group studied how NPIs impacted transmission of RSV infection by retrospectively collecting data on children admitted during the winter season at Children's Hospital for Wales from 2015 to 2021.
Analysis of these data showed a significant decrease in the number of patients admitted for bronchiolitis during the winter of 2020/2021 compared with the previous 5 years, and in addition, no cases of RSV infection were identified. The results of this study reflect the changes that have occurred across Europe in response to the introduction of NPIs, which were introduced during the Covid-19 pandemic, and are in line with data collected from other countries that show, as was predicted, that with the relaxation of anti-Covid-19 measures an unseasonable outbreak of RSV bronchiolitis is beginning.
It is therefore necessary to be prepared to better manage this emerging issue, including considering the reallocation of medical and nursing staff, updating bronchiolitis management guidelines to promote, for example, the use of high-flow oxygen therapy in pediatric wards, and providing public health advice to higlight the importance of hygiene rules such as handwashing to reduce the spread of RSV.

Reference
Hussain F, Kotecha S, Edwards MO. RSV bronchiolitis season 2021 has arrived, so be prepared! Arch Dis Child. 2021 Dec;106(12):e51. doi: 10.1136/archdischild-2021-322835. Epub 2021 Aug 19. PMID: 34413023.