Children’s Hospital in New Orleans said they have nearly 90 kids fighting respiratory syncytial virus, also known as RSV. Three-year-old Keller Abshire is one of those children.“Keller has a joy about him that’s not seen in a typical child. Keller has Down syndrome he sees things in a different light there are no negative aspects of life to Keller,” his mother Megan Abshire said.Abshire said her son contracted RSV about one month ago.”We were blindsided by it,” she said. “What we thought was going to be the common cold ended up being an array of illnesses that have your son on a ventilator.”The family is from the Lafayette area, and as Keller’s conditions got worse, he was taken by helicopter to Children’s Hospital in New Orleans.”He has RSV, rhinovirus, pneumonia, he became septic at the hospital, and now we are on our third intubation here. It’s just gut-wrenching. The whole thing is gut-wrenching,” Abshire said”It’s wreaking havoc,” Dr. Mark Kline said. “Half of the beds in our hospital are full of patients who have RSV.”Kline is an infectious disease specialist at Children’s Hospital.”RSV is related to COVID-19 indirectly, we think, because everyone was masked up and social distancing for the past 18 months, so there was less opportunity for RSV to spread,” Kline said. “There’s children that have never been exposed to the virus as they typically would have been, so they are getting sick right now. It’s unusual to see RSV in the summertime. Typically it is a wintertime virus. We are seeing loads of cases.”Kline said frequent hand washing and not being exposed to others who have obvious respiratory symptoms are the key factors in preventing RSV. Anyone who has cold symptoms (child or adult) should stay away from work or school until the symptoms have subsided. Abshire said it is unclear how her son contracted the virus. She wants other parents to be aware of this virus and to take a moment to pray for any child fighting RSV.”This is a special little boy meant to touch a lot of people and I believe he has a bigger purpose here,” Abshire said. “He’s our heart. He’s the glue to our family, we need him to get well and get home. I love you Keller and we all know you are a fighter and will recover. God has you. We can’t wait to have you home. I’m very happy with the care at Children’s Hospital.”
NEW ORLEANS —
Children’s Hospital in New Orleans said they have nearly 90 kids fighting respiratory syncytial virus, also known as RSV.
Three-year-old Keller Abshire is one of those children.
“Keller has a joy about him that’s not seen in a typical child. Keller has Down syndrome he sees things in a different light there are no negative aspects of life to Keller,” his mother Megan Abshire said.
Abshire said her son contracted RSV about one month ago.
“We were blindsided by it,” she said. “What we thought was going to be the common cold ended up being an array of illnesses that have your son on a ventilator.”
The family is from the Lafayette area, and as Keller’s conditions got worse, he was taken by helicopter to Children’s Hospital in New Orleans.
“He has RSV, rhinovirus, pneumonia, he became septic at the hospital, and now we are on our third intubation here. It’s just gut-wrenching. The whole thing is gut-wrenching,” Abshire said
“It’s wreaking havoc,” Dr. Mark Kline said. “Half of the beds in our hospital are full of patients who have RSV.”
Kline is an infectious disease specialist at Children’s Hospital.
“RSV is related to COVID-19 indirectly, we think, because everyone was masked up and social distancing for the past 18 months, so there was less opportunity for RSV to spread,” Kline said. “There’s children that have never been exposed to the virus as they typically would have been, so they are getting sick right now. It’s unusual to see RSV in the summertime. Typically it is a wintertime virus. We are seeing loads of cases.”
Kline said frequent hand washing and not being exposed to others who have obvious respiratory symptoms are the key factors in preventing RSV. Anyone who has cold symptoms (child or adult) should stay away from work or school until the symptoms have subsided.
Abshire said it is unclear how her son contracted the virus. She wants other parents to be aware of this virus and to take a moment to pray for any child fighting RSV.
“This is a special little boy meant to touch a lot of people and I believe he has a bigger purpose here,” Abshire said. “He’s our heart. He’s the glue to our family, we need him to get well and get home. I love you Keller and we all know you are a fighter and will recover. God has you. We can’t wait to have you home. I’m very happy with the care at Children’s Hospital.”