New jab can protect infants and ease pressure on NHS

Hundreds of thousands of people in England and Scotland are now eligible to receive a vaccine to protect them from respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), as the government rolls out a national programme before winter.

- REBECCA THOMAS

The jab will be available to those over 75 and pregnant women over 28 weeks. If mothers are vaccinated during pregnancy, the antibodies they make pass across the placenta and can protect the baby for around six months.

RSV accounts for approximately 30,000 hospital admissions of babies each winter and leads to dozens of deaths. A recent study suggested that in 2022-23 RSV admissions cost the NHS approximately £91m.

RSV in infants under one can be particularly harmful as it can trigger bronchiolitis, which inflames the small airways and can cause significant breathing difficulties. In older adults, it is a cause of acute respiratory illness.