The virus can live up to five hours on counter tops and for several hours on used tissues. An infant usually gets infected by close contact with an older family member who may only seem to have a mild cold. This could be an older brother or sister, an aunt, uncle, or grandparent. Even mom or dad can infect their own infant. Symptoms usually appear 4-6 days after exposure.
Symptoms develop slowly over a period of several days.
The contagious period is usually less than 10 days after symptoms begin, but it can sometimes be longer. If you have a child under two years of age who was born prematurely, or who has chronic lung disease, heart disease, or is immunocompromised, your child has a greater chance of developing RSV infection. Talk to your doctor before the RSV season begins. If your child appears to have a cold and begins to have a hard time breathing, has deeper and more frequent coughing, or he begins to act sicker by being more tired, less playful, and less interested in eating, he may have developed a more serious RSV infection. Only your doctor will be able to tell you for sure.