RSV Awareness

Respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV, is a highly contagious seasonal virus that usually runs from October to April and affects most children by the time they are two years old. It is the leading cause of hospitalization for all infants under age one. Infants younger than one are 16 times more likely to be hospitalized for RSV than for the flu, and RSV accounts for 500,000 emergency room visits in young children each year.

Some infants experience only mild cold-like symptoms, but for others, RSV can cause bronchiolitis, pneumonia and respiratory distress, which can lead to hospitalization and mechanical ventilation. Some babies do not survive, while others survive with chronic respiratory issues that follow them into adulthood. 

Join the National Coalition for Infant Health in raising awareness about RSV by sharing your own story and learning more in the educational materials below. Share them on social media using the hashtags #RSVAwareness and #RallyAgainstRSV.

 

Papers

 
Featured
The Indirect Impact of RSV
The Indirect Impact of RSV

RSV, or respiratory syncytial virus, is a common, highly contagious seasonal virus that affects 97% of children by the age of 2. Yet despite RSV being common among young children, most parents know little about it.

Read the Paper

Vaccines and Preventive Monoclonal Antibodies
Vaccines and Preventive Monoclonal Antibodies

Vaccines and preventive monoclonal antibodies are two different types of immunization. While they function differently, they both serve the same purpose: protecting people from serious illnesses and diseases.

View One-Pager

The Burden of RSV: Impacting All Families
The Burden of RSV: Impacting All Families

Respiratory syncytial virus places a heavy burden on infants, young children, their families and the health care system. Also known as RSV, this virus can impact children and families for months, years or even their entire lives.

And it doesn’t discriminate.

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Videos

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[Webinar] Protecting Infants from RSV: Understanding Guidance on New Prevention Tools
[Webinar] Protecting Infants from RSV: Understanding Guidance on New Prevention Tools

Watch Karen Crowley, DNP, Jeffereson Jones, MD, MPH, and Bob Hopkins, MD, give an overview of RSV, new options to prevent it and CDC guidance for their use, and resources for providers and patients/caregivers.

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[Webinar] Under the Immunization Umbrella: Options to Reduce the Burden of RSV
[Webinar] Under the Immunization Umbrella: Options to Reduce the Burden of RSV

Watch L.J. Tan, MS, PhD, & Maria Woosley, DNP, APRN CPNP-AC discuss the different types of immunizations currently available, as well as those under review by FDA, policies impacting access to RSV immunizations and the real-world impact of RSV on infants, children and families.

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The Umbrella of Immunizations
The Umbrella of Immunizations

To boost public health and maximize disease prevention, all immunizations should be treated the same.

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Managing RSV's Indirect Impact
Managing RSV's Indirect Impact

A survey of 340 parents whose child caught RSV reveals the devastating burdens that families may experience when their child becomes ill. To manage the indirect impacts of RSV, policymakers must support innovation and ensure timely and equitable access to care and preventive interventions.

Read the full survey report

Watch the Video

Emily's RSV Story
Emily's RSV Story

Emily's daughter Presley caught RSV and passed away in November 2021. Now, Emily advocates and raises awareness about RSV.

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[Webinar] Survey Briefing: The Indirect Impact of RSV
[Webinar] Survey Briefing: The Indirect Impact of RSV

This survey briefing discusses the indirect impact and burden of RSV on babies, young children, their families and the health care providers who treat young RSV patients. Two surveys were conducted, one of parents who had at least one child contract RSV, and one of pediatric health care providers who treat babies and young children with RSV.

Watch webinar

Closing the Gap: Disparities & RSV
Closing the Gap: Disparities & RSV

Much of the public is unaware of the severity of RSV. Patricia Whitley-Williams, MD, immediate past president of NFID and chief of Allergy, Immunology and Infectious Diseases at Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, discusses health disparities that impact babies and young children with RSV.

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The Burden of RSV
The Burden of RSV

While RSV can lead to severe symptoms for babies and young children, the virus can also result in heavy financial and emotional burdens for families.

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What is RSV?
What is RSV?

Respiratory syncytial virus, also known as RSV, is a seasonal virus that affects nearly all infants and children before they are two years old.

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The Troublemaker
The Troublemaker

General pediatrician Lynn Smitherman, MD, explains how the burden of RSV weighs heavily on babies, children and their families.

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Melanie's RSV Story
Melanie's RSV Story

Melanie and Dan's daughter Reagan was hospitalized for 10 days after she was diagnosed with RSV. Despite doing everything they could to protect their children from the virus, a few years later both of their twin sons were also hospitalized with RSV.

Watch The Video

The Dangers of RSV
The Dangers of RSV

Neonatologist Vincent Smith, MD, explains why RSV can be dangerous for infants and young children.

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Megan's RSV Story
Megan's RSV Story

When Iowa Representative Megan Jones' son Archie was diagnosed with RSV, he spent 5 days in the hospital. Now, she works to raise awareness about the potentially deadly disease.

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Safety in the NICU
Safety in the NICU

Infants need health care tailored to their age, weight and medical condition. But that's not always what they receive.

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Insurance Rejection & Infants at RSV Risk
Insurance Rejection & Infants at RSV Risk

Preventive treatment can protect vulnerable preemies from deadly respiratory syncytial virus. But national data shows that insurance companies are denying access for the babies who need it.

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Survey Says: RSV
Survey Says: RSV

The National Coalition for Infant Health summarizes results of its recent survey on RSV, which demonstrated that parents need more information about the potentially deadly disease.

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The Gap Baby: An RSV Story
The Gap Baby: An RSV Story

Most young children encounter what’s known as Respiratory Syncytial Virus, or RSV, before age two. It’s a common seasonal virus with flu-like symptoms. But as this video from the National Coalition for Infant Health explains, premature infants whose health plans don’t cover preventive RSV treatment may suffer – and unnecessarily so.

Watch the Video

RSV and Respiratory Distress
RSV and Respiratory Distress

In the early stages of RSV disease, the infant in the video struggles to breathe. Notice how his breastbone sinks inward when he breathes- this is retractions, and it means the baby is using all his strength to keep breathing.

Watch The Video

Infographics

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Social Graphics

Blogs & Press Releases

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RSV Vaccine to Get Priority Review by the FDA
RSV Vaccine to Get Priority Review by the FDA

The Food and Drug Administration will give priority review to a first-of-its-kind maternal vaccine against respiratory syncytial virus via the breakthrough therapy program.

Amidst Tripledemic, the Burden of RSV Makes Itself Known
Amidst Tripledemic, the Burden of RSV Makes Itself Known

It’s been called the “tripledemic” – the flu, COVID-19 and RSV colliding in a dangerous viral storm. And now new data suggest that RSV, or respiratory syncytial virus, may pose an even greater burden than some realized. 

We Should Protect Every Baby from RSV
We Should Protect Every Baby from RSV

Health officials, the media, even the president, continue to urge Americans to protect themselves by getting vaccinated and boosted against COVID-19. I hope they will take the same dedicated approach if protection from RSV is one day a reality for all babies and young children.

It Was Worse Than Open-Heart Surgery
It Was Worse Than Open-Heart Surgery

After my infant son had open-heart surgery, I thought we’d been through the worst experience of our lives. Then he got RSV.

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Advocates Urge Timely and Equitable Access to Prevention for RSV
Advocates Urge Timely and Equitable Access to Prevention for RSV

Including new monoclonal antibodies – vaccine-like interventions – in the Vaccines for Children program will reduce the burden of RSV and ensure access for all infants

 

Share Your Story


Experience with RSV? Share your story below. Your story won't be shared with anyone else unless we ask you first.