Johns Hopkins A new vaccine for pregnant people and an antibody treatment for babies could substantially lower the rates of severe RSV infections among children, but rollout has been slow ahead of the first RSV season the products are available.
Virtually all children get an RSV infection by the time they are 2 years old. The virus generally causes cold-like symptoms, but infections can become severe in young children; every year in the U.S., an estimated 58,000-80,000 kids under 5 are hospitalized due to RSV infection.
Earlier this year, two new products were approved to help protect infants from severe disease: a vaccine for pregnant people and an antibody treatment for babies. However, as we head into winter—when RSV transmission rates are highest—availability of these products is lacking, and people may still have a hard time getting them, says Ruth Karron, MD, a professor in International Health and director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Immunization Research. In this Q&A with Josh Sharfstein, MD, adapted from an episode of Public Health On Call, Karron discusses these two new products, how they should be used, and why she’s been referring to 2023 as “the year of RSV.”