Respiratory syncytial virus abbreviated RSV causes an estimated 3.6 million hospitalizations annually and 97,200 to 124,900 deaths among children 5 years of age or younger worldwide. Most of the deaths occur in developing countries but many if not most of the hospitalizations occur in more developed countries like the US. RSV is the cause of an annual winter epidemic of respiratory illness in all age groups. Sadly, no specific therapy is available to treat RSV, at least not yet.
Most of you know that there is a vaccine for RSV which has shown itself to be very effective and safe. The vaccine is approved for use in adults 60 years of age or older and in pregnant women. It is particularly needed in individuals with other underlying conditions such as COPD, diabetes and really any situation where the patient may have a serious outcome if infected.
I especially recommend the vaccine to older adults who have frequent visits from young grandchildren or for those seniors who are tasked with caring for their grandchildren on a regular basis. In this context it is important to understand that the transmission of this highly contagious virus can go both ways, i.e., from child to adult or from adult to child. Given that there is no proven, fully effective treatment for RSV it makes it all
the more important for adults 60 years or older and who may have underlying problems to get vaccinated. Don’t let you or your grandchildren be a statistic.
