Alberta hospitals see resurgence of viral illnesses in kids but not so much in adults
After a dramatic decline during the early part of the pandemic, Calgary emergency room doctors say they're seeing a resurgence of respiratory illnesses in children but they're not yet witnessing the same trend in adults.
Dr. Eddy Lang, department head for emergency medicine in the Calgary zone, said adult ER visits for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), asthma and non-COVID pneumonia plummeted in Alberta last year and still remain low.
And, according to Lang, fewer adults are showing up with symptoms such as fever, congestion and sore throats again this fall.
"Amongst adults, we're seeing relatively fewer respiratory and infectious visits than we did at around this time last year, and certainly much less than during the flu season that we lived through just before the pandemic hit," he said.
There were no seasonal influenza cases confirmed in Alberta during last year's flu season and just three cases have been identified so far this year.
Alberta ERs, Lang said, are treating about 30 per cent fewer adults for fever and about two-thirds fewer adults with cold symptoms than they would at the height of a typical cold and flu season.
'Huge' spike in kids
The trends, however, are much different among children.
"It's actually been a complete swing of the pendulum from what we saw last year," said Dr. Stephen Freedman, professor of pediatrics and emergency medicine at the University of Calgary.
"We're seeing a huge surge in a number of children presenting with typical viral illnesses of childhood."
According to Freedman, doctors are seeing an increase in respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), which can be very serious for young children, causing pneumonia or bronchiolitis (a condition occurring when airways are inflamed) and leading to hospitalization.
There's also a resurgence of other common viruses, and, according to Freedman, far more children are showing up in the ER with asthma flare-ups.
"The number of children we are seeing in the emergency department is very high, especially for this time of the year. We typically see it get worse as we get into the true winter months," said Freedman, who is also an ER physician at Alberta Children's Hospital.
More children are also showing up in the ER with COVID-19.
All this comes at a time when Alberta Children's Hospital is dealing with bed shortages — due to a spike in the number of kids needing mental health treatment, ongoing nursing shortages and increased demands on staff who must spend more time putting on and taking off personal protective equipment.
Wait times are growing as a result, according to Freedman. Less acute cases, which would normally wait one to two hours for treatment, may now wait three to five hours, he said.
"But those who are acutely unwell are being cared for as they normally and always would be and are being prioritized for care, and we make sure that we have the resources and capacity … to handle these children."
While it's not entirely clear why viral illnesses are surging once again in children but not adults, Freedman believes parents may be letting down their guard.
"Keeping kids home when they're sick, which we did really, really well last year probably is a huge … reason for the reduction in the number of viral illnesses children had last year," he said.
"I think what we're seeing is lots of people giving in essentially to the fact that, my kid should be going to school or going to daycare while ill, which then leads to many more children having viruses and it just kind of cycles around."
Meanwhile Lang said the lower number of ER visits among adults could be a sign that more people are opting to visit their family doctors or call Health Link for mild illness
But he believes ongoing public health measures including masking and limiting contact are likely key factors keeping viruses at bay.
"The measures that we've put in place seem to be reducing the burden of respiratory illness," he said.
"Those with chronic lung disease [including] asthmatics, people with COPD, the elderly, need to know these measures might have some benefits if they're continued."
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