CDC: Stronger discharge planning needed for RSV patients

Preliminary results taken from a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention analysis on respiratory syncytial virus infection mortality support stronger discharge planning and early post-discharge follow-up for patients hospitalized with RSV, said CDC Medical Officer Michael Melgar, MD. Among 18,301 adults hospitalized with RSV from 2014 to 2024, 1,565, or 8.6%, died during hospitalization or within 30 days of discharge across eight RSV seasons. Seven hundred and fifty-three deaths occurred within 30 days post-discharge, including 467 people not discharged to hospice ─ a subset Melgar flagged as unexpected patient deaths within 30 days of discharge. He also called for prevention messaging to urge eligible adults to get vaccinated against RSV. (MedPage Today article, 10/24/26)