Business Insights

RSV: Help Stop the Spread During a Time of Concern

The following is a sponsored post by Clorox.

One pathogen that is making headlines this year is respiratory syncytial (sin-SISH-uhl) virus, also known as RSV.  As one of the most widely recognized causes of seasonal illness, RSV is responsible for millions of respiratory infections in the U.S. each year.1 RSV typically causes mild, cold-like symptoms including runny nose, decreased appetite, coughing, sneezing, fever, and wheezing. These symptoms usually begin 4-6 days after infection and occur in stages rather than all at once.2 Most people fully recover in 1-2 weeks. RSV infections can be serious, especially for infants and older adults. In the U.S., RSV is the most common cause of bronchiolitis and pneumonia in children younger than one and a significant cause of respiratory illness in older adults.3 Annually, RSV infections in the U.S. are attributed to 58,000 hospitalizations among children younger than five years old and 177,000 hospitalizations among adults aged 65 years or older.1

Preventing the Spread

RSV is spread by droplets when an infected person coughs or sneezes, or by surfaces if someone touches a contaminated surface and then touches their face before washing their hands. RSV is known to survive for many hours on hard surfaces and objects, which is a risk of transmission and exposure. Survival on soft surfaces like tissues and hands is more limited.4

Currently, no RSV vaccine is available. In the absence of a vaccine, the CDC recommends four things to help stop the spread of RSV this respiratory season:4

  1. Cover coughs and sneezes. Use your elbow or a tissue and not your hands, which are more likely to spread virus through touch.
  2. Wash hands. Carefully and frequently wash hands with soap and water or use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer.
  3. Stay home when ill. Encourage those who are sick to stay home and limit contact with others.
  4. Clean and disinfect. Ensure frequent cleaning and disinfecting of high-touch and contaminated surfaces and objects with an EPA-registered disinfectant such as Clorox® Disinfecting Wipes which can kill RSV in 15 seconds or Clorox EcoCleanTM Disinfecting Cleaner and CloroxPro® Clean-Up® Disinfectant Cleaner with Bleach which can kill RSV in 30 seconds.

In addition to personal care, there is a shared responsibility in maintaining the health and safety of the environments where learning, work, and play occur. With RSV and respiratory illness on the rise, facilities managers, custodial staff, as well as occupants play a critical role in helping keep spaces clean and disinfected.

References

  1. CDC. RSV Trends and Surveillance [Internet]. [cited 2022 Oct 28]. Available from: https://www.cdc.gov/rsv/research/us-surveillance.html
  2. CDC. RSV Symptoms. [Internet]. [cited 2022 Oct 28]. Available from https://www.cdc.gov/rsv/about/symptoms.html
  3. CDC. Respiratory Syncytial Virus Infection (RSV). [Internet]. [cited 2022 Oct 28]. Available from https://www.cdc.gov/rsv/index.html.
  4. CDC. RSV Transmission. [Internet]. [cited 2022 Oct 28]. Available from https://www.cdc.gov/rsv/about/transmission.html
  5. CDC. RSV Prevention. [Internet]. [cited 2022 Oct 28]. Available from https://www.cdc.gov/rsv/about/prevention.html