RSV is bringing cold like symptoms to the Rio Grande Valley faster than it is in other parts of the state, according to data from the Department of State Health Services.

“We're seeing the South Texas area is the first to see that increase,” DSHS spokesman Chris Van Deusen said.

The South Texas area seeing that increase is designated as Region 11, and it’s made up of the Rio Grande Valley, Laredo, Corpus Christi and the counties in between.

Deusen said more than 150 people were tested for RSV in the last week of September, and more than 20% of those tests came back positive.

That high rate of positive tests is being felt locally, according to McAllen pediatrician Dr. Margaret Gutierrez with Liberty Pediatrics.

“We're moving right on into the RSV season quite quickly,” Gutierrez said. 

According to Gutierrez, toddlers may feel the symptoms most. 

“A healthy child who is less than age two, who has RSV and isn't seen by the doctor soon enough, can get extremely ill,” Gutierrez said. “I had one last year, a 1 and a half year old boy, who was in the hospital for four nights with RSV."

Pre-mature babies, people with asthma, cardiac diseases and immunocompromised are especially at risk as the virus spreads this fall.

“We expect that we will see at some point during cold and flu season an increase in RSV across the entire state,” Deusen said.

Deusen said parents should look out for signs of wheezing or trouble breathing in their kids if they get sick.

There are new vaccines both for people over 60 and for mothers and their unborn children, as well as a new antibody boost for kids.

Traditional defenses also work, Gutierrez added.

“The basic message is, wash the hands frequently,” Gutierrez said.