New RSV vaccine for newborns and elderly welcomed by Irish expert
Dr Scott Walkin, Irish College of General Practitioners HSE clinical lead for Antimicrobial Resistance and Infection Control, said: “There will be RSV and the flu, as there is every winter. There will be covid-19, although the seasonal pattern that C19 will settle into is not yet clear.”
New vaccines targeting RSV in newborn babies and older people have been hailed as an exciting development by an Irish GP specialising in infection control.
The EU health regulator, the European Medicines Agency, last month backed a vaccine developed by Pfizer called Abrysvo for use with newborns and older people. They recommended this for marketing authorisation; a step towards use across EU countries including Ireland.
Referring to its use for infants, the EMA said: “Abrysvo is the first RSV vaccine indicated for passive immunisation of infants from birth through six months of age following administration of the vaccine to the mother during pregnancy".
Dr Scott Walkin, Irish College of General Practitioners HSE clinical lead for Antimicrobial Resistance and Infection Control, said vaccines are crucial in tackling infectious diseases. “Whenever an effective, safe vaccine is developed it is very exciting for parents, doctors and people in general in my opinion,” he said.
Newborns would receive protection through their mothers. “The new RSV vaccine, Abrysvo, is similar to the whooping cough vaccine with regard to how it is administered,” he said.
“It is a vaccine that is given during pregnancy, between week 24 and 36 — pregnancy lasts about 40 weeks. The pregnant mum will produce protection against RSV which is passed to the baby. This protection stays in the baby’s body, but gradually fades.
He said hospital admissions with RSV are “over 25 times higher for infants under one year" than the population average, according to Irish data. Pfizer found the vaccine is 82% effective at preventing severe infections in babies when given in this way.
Last year, Irish hospitals saw record numbers of children and babies sick with RSV, but he said it is too early to predict what might happen this year.
“There will be RSV and the flu, as there is every winter. There will be covid-19, although the seasonal pattern that C19 will settle into is not yet clear,” he said. “Everybody should follow the advice of the HSE in getting the vaccines for which they are eligible.”
He made a particular appeal to parents of young children, saying: “A painless nasal flu vaccine will be available for free this winter for children, and I would strongly advise this for children.”
The Health Products Regulatory Authority in Ireland said the recommendation on the RSV vaccine is being sent to the European Commission.
“Once a marketing authorisation has been granted, decisions about price and reimbursement will take place at the level of each Member State, taking into account the potential role/use of Abrysvo in the context of the national health system of that country,” a spokeswoman said.
A Pfizer spokeswoman in Ireland said: “Pfizer is confident in its supply chain’s ability to meet the demand and is already manufacturing product 'at risk' in advance of potential approval. Additionally, we are scaling up our manufacturing network to add capacity.”
A second RSV vaccine, Arexvy, developed by GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals S.A for adults aged over 60, was granted European marketing authorisation in June.
