Forget colorful leaves. Any teacher knows that the real signs of falling are children with cough, sneezing and sniffles.
Autumn marks the beginning of the respiratory virus season, when colds flu and other diseases are beginning to spread – especially among the very young.
A recent study confirmed what many families intuitively know: the youngest students harbor the most germs.
Children in preschool and primary schools had the highest rates of virus detection compared to older students and staff, the data showed. study published in the journal “Pediatrics”.
“Young children can become infected with up to 10 respiratory viruses a year as their immune systems encounter various infections for the first time,” said Dr. Jennifer Goldman, a pediatrician at Children's Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, Missouri, who co-led the study.
Goldman and her colleagues analyzed nasal swabs and symptom reports from more than 800 students and staff in a large Kansas City school district from November 2022 to May 2023.
They found that overall, more than 85% of all participants had at least one respiratory virus detected during this time, and more than 80% had an episode of acute respiratory illness, although not necessarily at the same time.
More tellingly, 92% of preschool and elementary school-aged children tested positive for the virus, compared with about 86% of middle school students, about 77% of high school students and 76% of staff.
The study found that preschool children aged 3 to 5 years had the highest incidence.
Most of the viruses were types that cause colds, including rhinovirus, which was found in 65% of participants, and seasonal coronavirus types, found in about 30%. The virus that causes COVID-19 was detected in approximately 15% of those examined.
The new study provides a baseline look at the virus burden in schools, Goldman said.
It also supports the real-life experiences of pediatric parents like Dr. Nicole Torres of the University of Miami Health System.
“I can say this about my children, who are now in their teens: They were sicker when they were younger,” she said.
This study is also consistent with earlier studies that have shown that young children play a key role in the spread of respiratory viruses in the home. Dr. Carrie Byington was co-author University of Utah study published in 2015, which recruited 26 households to take nasal samples from everyone living in the house every week for a year.
That study found that children under 5 had the virus for half the weeks of the year, recalls Byington, now at the University of California, San Diego.
“And if you live in a family with multiple children, that proportion just increases, so it can seem like someone is always sick,” she said.
Disease Prevention It can be difficult for children at school or at home, experts admit.
They say it's important to stay up to date on COVID-19 and flu shots. So is washing your hands frequently, covering your cough and keeping your hands away from your eyes, nose and mouth. Cleaning and disinfecting frequently touched surfaces and objects and optimizing fresh air supply are also key.
When babies get sick, the best treatment is often supportive care such as extra fluids and rest. In severe cases, health care providers may recommend fever-reducing medications or antiviral medications.
However, lingering symptoms such as cough may take a couple of weeks to completely resolve. By then, the child may well catch a cold again.
“I tell parents of younger children to expect them to get sick once a month, every month and a half,” Torres said. “This is what it will look like.”
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The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute's Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. AP is solely responsible for all content.
