People were considered to have severe disease if they needed supplemental oxygen or needed mechanical help to breathe, like a ventilator. The vaccine was 94% effective at preventing severe disease in seniors. Lower respiratory tract disease was defined in the study as a positive test and two more symptoms for at least a day, including new or worsening cough, wheezing, shortness of breath, an elevated respiratory rate, lowered blood oxygen or crackles in the lungs, which a doctor would pick up with a stethoscope. Johnson & Johnson halts development of RSV vaccine in midst of late-stage clinical trials

In a clinical trial of nearly 25,000 older adults, the results of which were published in the New England Journal of Medicine, the GSK vaccine was 83% effective at preventing lower respiratory tract disease caused by the virus.

Ruth Karron, a professor of international health at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, who was not involved in the development of the vaccine. And this is really a wonderful development,” said Dr. In some years, the burden of RSV disease comes close to the burden of flu in the elderly. “RSV certainly is an important disease in the elderly. In the US, an estimated 159,000 adults 65 and older are hospitalized each year with RSV, and an estimated 10,000 to 13,000 die as a result of their infection. “Today’s approval of the first RSV vaccine is an important public health achievement to prevent a disease which can be life-threatening and reflects the FDA’s continued commitment to facilitating the development of safe and effective vaccines for use in the United States.”Īlthough RSV is a disease that’s often associated with babies and young children, it can also be dangerous for seniors. Peter Marks, director of the FDA’s Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, in a statement. “Older adults, in particular those with underlying health conditions, such as heart or lung disease or weakened immune systems, are at high risk for severe disease caused by RSV,” said Dr. It could be available for seniors as soon as this fall, pending a recommendation for its use from the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, which next meets in June. Late-stage RSV vaccine trials show 'exciting promise,' some scientists say RSV is the most common cause of bronchiolitis and pneumonia among infants and children, under 1-year of age. The virion is variable in shape, and size, with an average diameter between 120-300nm. This highly-magnified, 1981 transmission electron microscopic (TEM) image, reveals some of the morphologic traits exhibited by a human respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).

How To Be a Tudor by Ruth Goodman