When an adult gets RSV infection, they typically have mild cold-like symptoms. But RSV can sometimes lead to serious conditions such as

• Pneumonia (infection of the lungs)
• More severe symptoms for people with asthma
• More severe symptoms for people with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) (a chronic disease of the lungs that makes it hard to breathe)
• Congestive heart failure (when the heart can’t pump blood and oxygen to the body’s tissues)

Older adults who get very sick from RSV may need to be hospitalized. Some may even die. Older adults are at greater risk than young adults for serious complications from RSV because our immune systems weaken when we are older.