Remarkable RSV Vaccines: Is This the End of the RSV Burden As We Know It?

Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) is one of the most common causes of childhood respiratory illness, resulting in annual outbreaks among all age groups. In the United States, an estimated 60,000 to 80,000 children, the majority of whom are under 6 months of age, are hospitalized each year, and approximately 100 to 300 kids die from the infection. In developing countries, RSV is the single most common cause of death from respiratory illness after the newborn period. However, just this year, the medical community made history with the first RSV vaccine approvals for pregnant individuals, infants and older adults.   

Listen to our pediatric expert discuss RSV vaccines

In this episode, Eric Simoes, MD, joins us for a deep dive into RSVpreF, the first RSV vaccine for use in pregnant individuals, which is also used to protect newborns and infants from severe RSV in the first six months. We also discuss nirsevimab, a monoclonal antibody that protects infants and some children against RSV. That includes children ages 8 to 19 at increased risk for severe disease. This is a significant milestone for the scientific community and for public health. 

Dr. Simoes has been a part of creating these vaccines since the beginning as the global primary investigator for the RSVpreF and lead investigator for developing nirsevimab. Currently, Dr. Simoes is a clinical professor of pediatrics and infectious disease at the University of Colorado School of Medicine and a professor of epidemiology at the Colorado School of Public Health. He is also an active clinical infectious disease physician at Children’s Hospital Colorado. 

In this episode, we discuss:

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Infectious disease care at Children’s Colorado

The Infectious Disease Program at Children's Colorado provides a breadth of expertise ranging from laboratory-based research to the treatment and prevention of infectious diseases, including neonatal infections, serious infections in children such as pneumonia, meningitis, bone and joint infections, Kawasaki disease, infections in immunocompromised hosts, and pediatric and adolescent HIV infections. Our Program advocates an emphasis on vaccine-preventable diseases through immunizations.