JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (Ivanhoe Newswire) – RSV is a respiratory disease most people think is only dangerous for babies but it actually can be life-threatening for older people as well. Now, for the first time, after decades of testing and tweaking, researchers have developed – and the FDA has approved – a vaccine for this sometimes-deadly virus. Is it safe, and who should get it?
“RSV vaccine has been six decades in the making, and it was pretty groundbreaking,” says infectious disease expert at Baptist Health in Jacksonville, Florida, Dr. Shalika Katugaha.
Now, for the first time, a vaccine is approved for adults 60 and older. But what is RSV? RSV stands for respiratory syncytial virus. It mimics the common cold but can turn into pneumonia. Infectious disease experts say babies, older people and anyone with a compromised immune system is at risk.
Dr. Katugaha explains, “RSV is transmitted when someone coughs or sneezes, and then another common way that people do get it, especially these older adults, is direct contact with the virus, which actually means kissing their grandchild and getting it from them exactly that way.”
Severe cases can be deadly.
“It’s, in fact, responsible for around 10,000 deaths in people over 60 and in 60,000 to 160,000 hospitalizations in this age group,” Dr. Katugaha adds.
To date, two vaccines have FDA-approval – the first made by GSK – the brand name is Arexvy, the second was created by Pfizer. In clinical trials, the new RSV vaccine showed that the once-a-year shot lowered the risk of symptoms by 83 percent and severe illness by 94 percent. But is the shot safe?
Dr. Katugaha says, “They are not live shots and so, they should be fine for anyone over 60 to get.”
But with many older adults already on their fifth or sixth covid vaccine and booster, combined with the flu and shingles vaccines – is that too many vaccines for our body to handle?
“Your body does not get too many vaccines. In fact, vaccines are our strength and our armor; they’re what protect us, Dr. Katugaha answers.
The goal is to have the vaccine available by fall, in time for the next RSV season, which usually peaks between December and February. And doctors warn, there is no treatment for RSV, so prevention is key. The vaccine is not yet approved for children or infants, but researchers hope by getting it to the older population first, it will pave the way for clinical trials for infants and children. The vaccine will be similar to the flu vaccine and it appears to last one year.
Contributors to this news report include: Marsha Lewis, Producer; Roque Correa, Videographer & Editor.
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MEDICAL BREAKTHROUGHS
RESEARCH SUMMARY
TOPIC: HEALTH ALERT: LIFESAVING RSV VACCINE APPROVED FOR SENIORS
REPORT: MB #5252
BACKGROUND: RSV, also known as Respiratory Syncytial Virus, is a respiratory condition that takes the form of traditional cold-like symptoms in the body. The virus is typically mild, with most carriers beating the cold within two weeks. However, when found in infants and older adults, it can raise serious health concerns. Every year, 58,000-80,000 children younger than 5 years old are hospitalized due to complications with RSV. In adults 65 years and older, 60,000-160,000 hospitalizations occur due to RSV.
(Source: RSV Surveillance and Research | CDC
RSV (Respiratory Syncytial Virus) | CDC)
DIAGNOSING: The typical symptoms of RSV are coughing, fever, runny nose, sneezing, wheezing, and a decrease in appetite. In very young children, lack of physical movement and breathing difficulties are telltale signs of the virus. RSV symptoms greatly mirror that of the common cold, so testing isn’t necessary to diagnose this condition. However, for cases resulting in hospitalizations, testing such as CT scans and Imaging tests may be administered for further prognosis.
(Source: Symptoms and Care of RSV (Respiratory Syncytial Virus) | CDC
RSV Symptoms and Diagnosis | American Lung Association)
NEW TECHNOLOGY: Neil King, an assistant biochemistry professor at the University of Washington Medicine, has begun constructing nanoparticles as a way of building greater resistance in the body against RSV. His team uses computers as a way of replicating and generating the protein structures found in human DNA. This technology has not yet been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
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Emily Sharpe
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