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. 2023 Jun 13;10(7):ofad315.
doi: 10.1093/ofid/ofad315. eCollection 2023 Jul.

Leveraging Influenza Virus Surveillance From 2012 to 2015 to Characterize the Burden of Respiratory Syncytial Virus Disease in Canadian Adults ≥50 Years of Age Hospitalized With Acute Respiratory Illness

May ElSherif  1 , Melissa K Andrew  1 , Lingyun Ye  1 , Ardith Ambrose  1 , Guy Boivin  2 , William Bowie  3 , Marie-Pierre David  4 , Olivier Gruselle  4 , Scott A Halperin  1 , Todd F Hatchette  1 , Jennie Johnstone  5 , Kevin Katz  6 , Joanne M Langley  1 , Mark Loeb  7 , Donna MacKinnon-Cameron  1 , Anne McCarthy  8 , Janet E McElhaney  9 , Allison McGeer  10 , Andre Poirier  11 , Jean-Yves Pirçon  4 , Jeff Powis  12 , David Richardson  13 , Makeda Semret  14 , Stephanie Smith  15 , Daniel Smyth  16 , Sylvie Trottier  2 , Louis Valiquette  17 , Duncan Webster  18 , Shelly A McNeil  1 , Jason J LeBlanc  1 ; Serious Outcomes Surveillance (SOS) Network of the Canadian Immunization Research Network (CIRN) and the Toronto Invasive Bacterial Diseases Network (TIBDN)
Affiliations

Leveraging Influenza Virus Surveillance From 2012 to 2015 to Characterize the Burden of Respiratory Syncytial Virus Disease in Canadian Adults ≥50 Years of Age Hospitalized With Acute Respiratory Illness

May ElSherif et al. Open Forum Infect Dis. .

Abstract

Background: Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) disease in older adults is undercharacterized. To help inform future immunization policies, this study aimed to describe the disease burden in Canadian adults aged ≥50 years hospitalized with RSV.

Methods: Using administrative data and nasopharyngeal swabs collected from active surveillance among adults aged ≥50 years hospitalized with an acute respiratory illness (ARI) during the 2012-2013, 2013-2014, and 2014-2015 influenza seasons, RSV was identified using a respiratory virus multiplex polymerase chain reaction test to describe the associated disease burden, incidence, and healthcare costs.

Results: Of 7797 patients tested, 371 (4.8%) were RSV positive (2.2% RSV-A and 2.6% RSV-B). RSV prevalence varied by season from 4.2% to 6.2%. Respiratory virus coinfection was observed in 11.6% (43/371) of RSV cases, with influenza A being the most common. RSV hospitalization rates varied between seasons and increased with age, from 8-12 per 100 000 population in adults aged 50-59 years to 174-487 per 100 000 in adults aged ≥80 years. The median age of RSV cases was 74.9 years, 63.7% were female, and 98.1% of cases had ≥1 comorbidity. Among RSV cases, the mean length of hospital stay was 10.6 days, 13.7% were admitted to the intensive care unit, 6.4% required mechanical ventilation, and 6.1% died. The mean cost per RSV case was $13 602 (Canadian dollars) but varied by age and Canadian province.

Conclusions: This study adds to the growing literature on adult RSV burden by showing considerable morbidity, mortality, and healthcare costs in hospitalized adults aged ≥50 years with ARIs such as influenza.

Keywords: Canada; RSV; adult; burden; hospitalization.

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Conflict of interest statement

Potential conflicts of interest. M. K. A. reports grant funding from the GSK group of companies, Pfizer, and Sanofi Pasteur, outside the submitted work, and past payments for ad hoc advisory activities from Seqirus, Pfizer, and Sanofi. T. F. H. reports grant funding from the GSK group of companies, and payments from Pfizer and AbbVie, outside the submitted work. S. A. H. reports payments from the GSK group of companies, during the conduct of the study and outside the submitted work. J. M. L. reports payments from the GSK group of companies and CIHR, during the conduct of the study, and reports payment from the GSK group of companies, outside the submitted work. J. J. L. reports payments from Pfizer, Merck, Janssen, and Sanofi, outside the submitted work. J. E. M. reports payments to her institution from GlaxoSmithKline group of companies, and Sanofi Pasteur, outside the submitted work. J. P. reports payments from the GSK group of companies, Merck, Roche, and Synthetic Biologics, outside the submitted work. M. S. reports payments from the GSK group of companies and Pfizer, during the conduct of the study. S. T. reports payments from CIHR, during the conduct of the study. L. V. reports payments from the GSK group of companies, during the conduct of the study. S. A. M. reports payments from the GSK group of companies, during the conduct of the study; and reports payments from Pfizer, Merck, Novartis, and Sanofi, outside the submitted work. All other authors report no potential conflicts.

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