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Review
. 2023 Oct 1;36(5):379-384.
doi: 10.1097/QCO.0000000000000952. Epub 2023 Aug 23.

The disease burden of respiratory syncytial virus in Infants

Alasdair P S Munro  1   2 , Federico Martinón-Torres  3   4   5 , Simon B Drysdale  6   7 , Saul N Faust  1   2
Affiliations
Review

The disease burden of respiratory syncytial virus in Infants

Alasdair P S Munro et al. Curr Opin Infect Dis. .

Abstract

Purpose of review: To describe the current global burden of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) in infants and its implications for morbidity, health resources and economic costs.

Recent findings: New prophylactic therapies are on the horizon for RSV in the form of long-acting monoclonal antibodies suitable for healthy infants and maternal immunizations.

Summary: Despite being responsible for significant global infant morbidity and mortality, until recently there have been no effective therapeutics available for healthy infants to protect them from RSV. Several new drugs are likely to be available within the next few years which could help relieve a huge burden on healthcare systems over the coming winters.

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Conflict of interest statement

S.N.F. acts on behalf of University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust as an Investigator and/or providing consultative advice on clinical trials and studies for paediatric and adult vaccines and antimicrobial agents funded or sponsored by manufacturers including Sanofi (including for the HARMONIE trial and RSV vaccines), Janssen, Pfizer, Moderna, AstraZeneca, GlaxoSmithKline, Novavax, Seqirus, Medimmune, Merck and Valneva. He receives no personal financial payment for this work. Federico Martinón-Torres has received honoraria from GSK group of companies, Pfizer Inc, Sanofi, MSD, Seqirus, Biofabri, and Janssen for taking part in advisory boards and expert meetings and for acting as a speaker in congresses outside the scope of the submitted work. F.M.-T. has also acted as principal investigator in randomized controlled trials of the above-mentioned companies, as well as Ablynx, Gilead, Regeneron, Roche, Abbott, Novavax, and MedImmune, with honoraria paid to his institution. S.B.D. has received honoraria from MSD and Sanofi for taking part in RSV advisory boards and has provided consultancy and/or investigator roles in relation to product development for Janssen, AstraZeneca, Pfizer, Moderna, Valneva, MSD, iLiAD and Sanofi with fees paid to St George's, University of London. S.B.D. is a member of the UK Department of Health and Social Care's (DHSC) Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) RSV subcommittee and Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency's (MHRA) Paediatric Medicine Expert Advisory Group (PMEAG), but the reviews expressed herein do not necessarily represent those of DHSC, JCVI, MHRA or PMEAG.

Figures

Box 1
Box 1
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FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
Respiratory virus hospitalizations in under 5's in England. Rates of weekly hospitalizations of less than 5-year-olds per 100 000 population by SARI Watch, England, of COVID-19, RSV and influenza during winter of 2022/2023 [37]. RSV, respiratory syncytial virus.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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