Nirsevimab Offers Babies Protection From RSV This Winter
Author: Ryan Hassan, MD, MPH, Boost Oregon's Medical Director and pediatrician working at Oregon Pediatrics in Happy Valley.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends the new Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) immunotherapy, Nirsevimab, for all newborns under eight months old starting this October. This is what parents should know about RSV and Nirsevimab.
RSV is the leading cause of hospitalizations in infants. Babies are at highest risk for RSV between October and March. Each year, over two-thirds of all babies in the US will be infected with RSV and 1-3% will be hospitalized. Most infants hospitalized or admitted to the Intensive Care Unit with RSV are full-term infants with no other medical conditions. Between 100 and 300 children under 5 years old die from RSV every year in the US.
Nirsevimab is an antibody to RSV that recognizes and attacks the virus before it can cause an infection. This is the same way that parental antibodies to other germs that cross the placenta during pregnancy protect babies for the first six months of life. Even though the antibodies eventually disappear, they last long enough to keep babies safe through RSV season. In clinical trials of thousands of newborns, Nirsevimab reduced the risk of RSV infection by over 70%. The only side effects are rash and irritation at the injection site, which happen in less than 1% of patients.
CDC recommends that babies under eight months old receive Nirsevimab at routine well visits between October and November, at the beginning of RSV season. Babies born during RSV season should receive Nirsevimab in the hospital, just like the Hepatitis B vaccine. Some high-risk infants should receive Nirsevimab again before their second RSV season.
Ask your child's healthcare provider how to protect your newborn with Nirsevimab this RSV season.
