Parvovirus B19, a seasonal respiratory virus that subsided during the pandemic, is making a comeback, U.S. health officials warned Tuesday.
In a issued by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the agency said it has received reports of higher test positivity rates in recent months: The proportion of people with antibodies indicating recent , which fell below 3% from 2022–2024, spiked to 10% in June.
But children between the ages of 5 and 9 were hit particularly hard, with infection rates going from 15% from 2022-2024 to 40% by June 2024. The United States isn't the only country experiencing a surge in parvovirus cases: In June, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control unusually high numbers of parvovirus cases in 14 European countries during the first quarter of 2024. Parvovirus, also known as "slapped cheek disease" for the facial rash it can cause in children, is considered common: Nearly half of Americans have detectable levels of antibodies by age 20, while more than 70% have these antibodies by the age of 40.
People in occupations with close contact with children, such as schools and day care centers, tend to be at higher risk of infection, the CDC noted. As with many other , social distancing measures that aimed to slow the spread of COVID during the pandemic also dramatically lowered parvovirus B19 infection rates. With that came a corresponding loss of immunity to the virus, which has now translated into higher infection rates across the.