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A press release from GSK states that the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has authorised Arexvy, the first respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine for older adults.
Prof Christopher Chiu, Professor of Infectious Diseases, Imperial College London, said:
“The authorisation of this first vaccine against RSV is a hugely important advance. RSV infection is a very common cause of severe illness in older people and important contributor to winter pressures on the NHS. However, most people have still not heard of it. The vaccine has been shown in large trials to work very well in preventing chest infections and hospitalisations with RSV. Hopefully, the approval of this and other RSV vaccines soon to become available will raise awareness of the problem and encourage as many people as possible to take up the vaccine when they are offered it.”
Prof Sir Andrew Pollard FMedSci, Ashall Professor of Paediatric Infection and Immunity and Director of the Oxford Vaccine Group, University of Oxford, said:
“There is a substantial burden of RSV infection in older adults, which contributes to the seasonal winter pressures for the NHS. Clinical trials of several products have shown that vaccination can boost immunity and reduce the risk of infection and hospitalisation with the potential to improve population health.”
Declared interests
Prof Christopher Chiu: “I sit on the RSV Subcommittee of the JCVI. I have active grant funding from GSK and Merck but not directly related to RSV vaccines.”
Prof Sir Andrew Pollard: “AJP is chair of JCVI and is an investigator on a European Commission grant on RSV in Europe.”