OAKDALE, Minn. — For five days Amanda Waterhouse and Jeremie Goodrich watched as their six-month-old son, hospitalized at the University of Minnesota Masonic Children's Hospital, struggled to breathe.
"You could see the muscles on the side of his body flex, because he was trying so hard to breathe," said Goodrich of his son, Henry.
When the couple first noticed something was wrong with their son, they thought it might be a cold, but their instincts started to tell them otherwise. A trip to a pediatrician confirmed Henry had respiratory syncytial virus, or RSV.
RSV is a common respiratory virus that causes cold-like symptoms, but if infants get it, it can be much more serious.
In Henry's case, he had RSV with bronchiolitis, and his five day hospital stay included time in the ICU.
"His oxygen level dropped low enough where they had to administer oxygen," said Waterhouse. "It went downhill so fast."
Doctors say while a case like Henry's is a severe example, RSV is a common virus. They say parents of babies should keep them away from people who are sick and make sure people who touch them have washed their hands.
Henry's parents want others to trust their instincts and act fast if their child isn't feeling well.
"They had told us that if we didn't bring him in, he probably would have just given up on breathing, because he was so tired and working so hard to get those breaths in," Waterhouse said.
Henry is now back home and his parents say he is feeling better.