December 2022, Berlin: Father Ziyad Salem took care of his eight-and-a-half-month-old son Omran Salem, … [+]
According to the latest data, respiratory syncytial virus activity continues to rise in the United States weekly update from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, with increasing numbers of children hospitalized in most of the country.
A United States-based company study published in November 2024 showed that a recently approved vaccine, nirsevimab, was 80% effective against hospitalizations in non-immunocompromised individuals aged 60 and older. And phase 3 trial facts published in the fall, showed that nirsevimab reduced RSV hospitalizations in healthy full-term and near-term infants by 77%.
RSV is the second leading cause of death in children under 5 years of age worldwide, after malaria. RSV causes 118,000 deaths in this age group every year. The virus is also the leading cause of hospitalizations among infants in the United States: 57,000 hospitalizations per year and between 100 and 300 deaths.
The Food and Drug Administration approved nirsevimab in July 2023. The drug is a long-acting monoclonal antibody to be used to prevent RSV-associated lower respiratory tract infections in infants and young children. Nirsevimab works differently than a traditional vaccine. The monoclonal antibody provides passive immunization. During vaccination, the body produces antibodies after an injection. With passive immunization, these antibodies are already in the injection.
The CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recommended nirsevimab in August 2023 for infants younger than eight months of age to protect against RSV-associated lower respiratory infections during their first RSV season and for children between eight and 19 months of age at increased risk for serious infections. RSV disease.
The agency based its decision on data from an investigation that suggests a gunshot occurred 90% effective against hospitalization in infants younger than 8 months. The CDC estimates that just over half of American infants are currently protected against RSV, either by direct administration of nirsevimab or by maternal vaccination.
Nirsevimab was approved in the United Kingdom in 2022 and has been used by the National Health Service since 2023. The injection is also being administered in other European countries, such as France. Real-world data show that the number of hospital admissions of children with RSV has decreased by more than 80% in these countries.
Not having nirsevimab available in combination with a high RSV incidence could put pressure on hospital capacity, as yesterday’s Dutch report suggests. Dutch hospitals this week temporarily suspended certain procedures in children, such as heart operations. According to the NOS news site, the seven pediatric ICUs There are currently relatively many children in the country with serious respiratory problems as a result of the RSV virus. The children’s ICUs are approaching their capacity limits, as about half of the 90 beds are already occupied by children with RSV. This occupancy is expected to increase further because the virus has not yet reached its peak.
Last year, the government’s Health Council recommended that all babies in the Netherlands be offered nirsevimab in their first year of life. But the vaccine is still not available in the country. Health authorities hope that once it becomes accessible this year, as many parents as possible will sign up to have their children vaccinated. The Dutch public health service expects that the vaccine will have a roughly preventive effect 80% of hospital admissions among infants and toddlers.