Doctors at Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital are seeing a noticeable uptick in influenza and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) this year, in comparison to last year.
For strain flu A, the hospital’s team observed a 322% increase from November 2024 to November 2025. Equally as concerning, RSV cases have increased 114% in the same period.
All Children’s pediatric infectious diseases physician Dr. Juan Dumois said that a particular trend this season could cause more illnesses in the coming months.
“What I’ve noticed that’s a little bit different than normal is that our RSV season has started late,” he explained. “Normally, we start seeing a significant increase in RSV cases by late September or early October. It really didn’t happen as much until the last few weeks.”
The flu season usually rises in mid to late December.
“What happens in a typical year is that the RSV peaks and starts coming down by the time the flu numbers start going up,” Dumois continue, “but because RSV came late, we may have an increase in RSV cases at the same time as flu cases.”
He added that the increase is leading to more hospitalizations, particularly for infants and older children with asthma.
Dumois believes the cooler weather and large gatherings could have played a role in the uptick. “It’s possible that the cool air that people breathe in when they are outside in colder weather may decrease the ability of immune system cells lining the nose to fight off viruses that you inhale.”
He explained that respiratory viruses are often spread in one of two ways. They can be passed through kisses on the lips or when someone coughs or sneezes in a person’s face. However, the most common way to get infected is if an individual touches an object that was touched by a sick person.
Direct contact with an infected individual is not required to get ill, Dumois stressed. “If you get those viruses on your fingers and then you touch your mouth or nose, you can infect yourself.”
There are multiple actions people can take to decrease the chances of getting sick. Dumois said that the flu vaccination can help prevent hospitalizations because even if one gets the illness, it will most likely be less severe.
He added that it’s important to become aware of any face touching habitats, such as sticking a pen in one’s mouth, and try to stop them. Additionally, using alcohol-based hand sanitizer can “significantly decrease the risk of infection.”
Immunocompromised individuals should consider wearing masks in public as a precaution, Dumois said. This can help people avoid getting infected through coughs or sneezes.
He explained that there are RSV vaccinations available for pregnant women to protect young infants from the virus once they’re born and susceptible to germs. Additionally, there is a separate RSV vaccine for newborn babies if their mothers choose not to get vaccinated.
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