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RSV cases on the rise, but new vaccine could be on the way

About half the children being treated now at Children's Hospital in New Orleans have RSV or some other respiratory illness.

NEW ORLEANS — Doctors have been telling us about a surge in young children getting very sick from a respiratory virus.

Now, a vaccine for one could be on the horizon.

Each year in the U.S., around 58,000 children younger than 5 years old are hospitalized with severe complications from an RSV infection.

About half the children being treated now at Children's Hospital in New Orleans have RSV or some other respiratory illness. And there is no peak in sight.

But now a vaccine is showing promise for RSV.

For many years in clinical practice, WWL-TV medical correspondent Dr. Corey Hébert has seen RSV.

When asked if he has seen babies die from this infection, he replied, “Oh absolutely. Absolutely. Absolutely all the time.”

The virus infects us all and can feel like a cold, but for the very young and premature babies, it can take their short lives.

“They just don't have the lung capacity to get through it, and they don't have the antibodies that they have, that adults having seen this their entire lives,” Dr. Hébert explained.

Doctors can only treat the symptoms. And depending on insurance, some weakened or at-risk babies can get doses of medical antibodies when they are well, as a preventative measure.

“I have been fighting for 20 years to try to get the monoclonal antibody commercially available for all children, because just because you're a term baby without a medical problem, that doesn't mean you can't die from RSV, but it was just cost prohibitive,” Dr. Hébert said.

But now Pfizer is releasing data from its RSV vaccine study. The pharmaceutical company says the shot, when given to 7,400 expectant women, passed on immunity that is nearly 82 percent effective against severe respiratory illness in babies up to three-months-old, and nearly 70 percent effective up to the first six months of age. There was also a 50 percent reduction in doctor visits.

“We've been looking since the 60s for RSV. It's just a very difficult vaccine to make,” he said.

Dr. Hébert says there are many companies in clinical trials for an RSV vaccine. He is the principal investigator on one, but the study protocol does not permit him to say which one. 

“We are at a point now where we're gathering data and analyzing the data, and if something were to happen there could be an emergency use authorization.”

As for Pfizer, the company says it will turn over its finding to the FDA for this year in hopes that the first RSV vaccine could be out by next winter.

Dr. Hébert cautions that seniors, especially those with chronic illnesses like COPD, or asthma, or weakened immune systems, are also at risk from RSV. It takes the lives of more than 10,000 adults yearly.

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