{"id":2997,"date":"2019-01-08T07:11:07","date_gmt":"2019-01-08T07:11:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/veryhealthy.life\/?p=2997"},"modified":"2021-08-06T00:10:43","modified_gmt":"2021-08-06T00:10:43","slug":"9-most-common-rsv-symptoms-in-adults","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/veryhealthy.life\/9-most-common-rsv-symptoms-in-adults\/","title":{"rendered":"9 Most Common RSV Symptoms in Adults"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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RSV is the Respiratory Syncytial Virus. This is a virus that infects the lungs and the respiratory tract and which therefore may cause difficulties with breathing, as well as a number of other symptoms such as lethargy, fever, mucus production, and more.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is a highly common condition. In fact, by the age of two, most children will have been infected by RSV at some point. In older adults, the good news is that RSV is, therefore, milder and less easy to identify.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The other good news is that RSV will respond well to self-care measures and is generally self-limiting. All you need to do is to rest and take care of yourself and the condition will normally go away on its own. The tricky part about RSV is that it is difficult to distinguish from the common cold. The good news is that the treatment is essentially the same, so this largely should not matter!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this post, we will take a look at nine of the most common symptoms of RSV in adults.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Fever<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

As with pretty much any infection<\/a>, one of the most common symptoms of RSV in adults is fever. This causes a rise in temperature which in turn makes the individual feel hot and\/or cold at the same time. Often you will experience a \u2018cold sweat\u2019. As long as the fever remains within a safe threshold however, a fever on its own is not necessarily a negative thing. In fact, the job of the fever is to make your body a less hospitable environment for the virus, so this should be helping you to recover more quickly in most cases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That said, fevers can be dangerous if they cause dehydration due to the extreme heat and sweating. For that reason, it is very important that you drink water regularly in order to help yourself prevent this.
A fever is more common in children than in adults but can occur at any age.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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2. Congestion<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Another way that the body tries to react to an infection is to produce mucus<\/a>. This is intended to drive out the virus and at the same time to help prevent more unwanted foreign bodies from getting in! Thus it is common to produce a lot of mucus in the throat and in the nose, which can make it difficult to breathe (especially through the nasal canal which is much more narrow).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You may find that it\u2019s hard to get comfortable and to sleep because of the blocked nose. The solution, therefore, is to try using something in order to break up the mucus and the congestion. You can do this by inhaling a number of essential oils, or alternatively by inhaling steam. To do the latter, hang your head over a bowl and fill it with boiling hot water. Then drape a towel over your head and over the bowel and this should then trap the hot air in with you so that you have no choice but to breathe it in.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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3. Cough<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Another of the most common symptoms of RSV is a cough. You might find that this is a tickle and irritation, or it might be a more severe cough. This cough is caused partly by the aforementioned build-up of mucus and phlegm which can block the throat <\/a>and create a tickle on the neck. You may find yourself constantly needing to clear it by coughing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Otherwise, a cough can be the result of irritation and inflammation to the lining of the throat caused by the infection. Either way, it\u2019s important to try and keep this coughing under control and to consider using cough medicine if necessary. Otherwise, the coughing can ultimately end up contributing to the pain and might make your cold much worse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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4. Wheezing<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Another common side effect of RSV is wheezing, or difficulty breathing. This can occur once again either as the result of the mucus build up in the throat or due to the throat lining becoming inflamed and thereby making it harder for air to get through. You might find yourself breathing more heavily or in a more labored fashion as you try to take more oxygen <\/a>in, and you might find that this is most noticeable during activity or exercise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Note that this symptom can be quite dangerous if you have a history of asthma as it can trigger an attack and potentially make it very difficult for you to breathe. Try to breathe calmly and carefully.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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5. Rapid Heartrate<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

An elevated heart rate is not so much a symptom <\/a>of RSV but of any condition like this. Your heart rate will often increase whenever your breathing speeds up. This is because the increased, rapid breathing will send a signal to the vagal nerve, which in turn will trigger the release of hormones and neurotransmitters such as adrenaline, norepinephrine, cortisol, etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the same time, the heart rate may be elevated as a result of the increased body temperature, or as a result of the infection itself. Essentially the body is now under stress and is fighting to get back to full health. You should find that this is a relatively minor change however unless you are experiencing a more severe form of infection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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6. Blueing Skin<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Your skin can turn blue if you are failing to get enough oxygen. If your throat has closed over slightly and you aren\u2019t managing to get enough air in, then you might find that your skin loses some of its normal red hues. Remember that our skin <\/a>is red because our blood is red. Our blood meanwhile is red due to the presence of red blood cells, which serve the role of carrying oxygen around the body. Without that oxygen, you can, therefore, find yourself turning a little blueish.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This symptom is actually significantly more common in children than it is in adults who will likely not get to this point. However, what is relatively common in adults is to see skin becoming paler. As mentioned, this is also often accompanied by sweating. This could also be compounded by the fever, which as mentioned is a common symptom of RSV.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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7. Tiredness<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

One of the most common symptoms associated with any type of infection is general tiredness, malaise, and fatigue<\/a>. This is because your body is doing the very busy work of fighting the infection, leaving less energy for your other usual functions. Therefore, you might find it harder to get out of bed in the morning, you might find yourself with somewhat \u2018brain fog\u2019 as you struggle to concentrate on things or remember what you\u2019re doing, and you might find that your muscles feel achy and sore.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Part of the reason for the latter two symptoms has to do with inflammation. When you are fighting an illness, the body will produce pro-inflammatory cytokines that have the job of triggering inflammation and swelling to kill infections and germs in specific areas around the body.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Those same cytokines, however, can also cause damage if they affect other parts of the body. They can cause low-level inflammation in the joints for instance and the muscles, hence that feeling of soreness and difficulty moving and doing normal tasks. At the same time, they can cause brain fog if they enter the brain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Finally, it\u2019s also worth noting that tiredness can come from the labored breathing. If you struggle to get enough oxygen from your usual inward breaths, then you\u2019re going to feel slower and more tired.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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8. Irritability<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

There are many reasons why you might notice changes in your mood when you have RSV or any other infection. For instance, you might find that you struggle sleeping, which is well known to lead to irritability and low mood.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the same time, the aforementioned effect on the brain of those pro-inflammatory cytokines <\/a>can also play a role and cause you to get upset about things more easily \u2013 brain inflammation has been repeatedly linked to depression in recent studies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then there is the fact that you are experiencing the stress response and the fact that you are in pain. All these things mean that you might become a little ratty. It\u2019s a secondary symptom and not a sure-sign of RSV \u2013 but it does happen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

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9. Headache<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Finally, headaches are also common with RSV and again this is true of any kind of infection or cold. The reason for this is not actually linked with the brain inflammation, but has more to do with the dehydration caused by the raised body temperature. This actually causes the brain <\/a>to shrink as it loses moisture, which in turn causes it to pull away from the inside of the skull \u2013 a painful process that can result in a nasty headache.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ultimately, while this all sounds rather gruesome, the truth is that RSV is a mild flu\/cold type of affair and one that will clear up on its own given time. In adults, this is nothing to worry about<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\r\n

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