PENNSYLVANIA, USA — It's respiratory virus season, but Lehigh Valley Health Network doctors say one illness started in the summer way ahead of the typical trends.
"At the very beginning, you don't know what we are dealing with because children will present with cough, congestion, and fever-like with any other respiratory infection."
Dr. Tibisay Villalobos with the LVHN Department of Pediatrics says kids are spreading a bacterial virus called mycoplasma pneumoniae. Which is also known as "walking pneumonia."
The health network is seeing a spike in the number of cases detected. Dr. Villalobos says most cases are mild, while others are more severe and require healthy children to receive ICU care.
"We are seeing children being hospitalized with atypical pneumonia. The prognosis is good, it will eventually get better, but sometimes they require oxygen supplementation and antibiotics,"
Dr. Villalobos says the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is tracking why cases are spiking.
"For a couple of years during the pandemic, there was no mycoplasma pneumonia. Barely any in the country, so once it starts circulating again, most children do not have any immunity to it from previous infections," said Dr. Villalobos.
Doctors recommend keeping up with regular hand washing and suggest mask-wearing to help prevent the spread.
Parents should consult their child's pediatrician with any health concerns.