Ministry of Health – Press service
Madrid, June 24, 2024 – Success of the immunization campaign against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infections in children in the first season of introduction.
Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a leading cause of lower respiratory tract infections in children under one year of age, especially associated with bronchiolitis and pneumonia. In Spain, this huge disease burden means that RSV infections cause significant strain on the health care system every winter, both in primary care and in emergency departments and hospitals.
For the first time, a new preventive measure appeared in the 2023-2024 season. It is a monoclonal antibody, nirsevimab, with a very good safety and efficacy profile, which has been recommended since the presentation of the vaccine and has been systematically administered in Spain to children under 6 months of age and to those at high risk of serious illness. . Acceptance of immunization has been very good. In fact, coverage of more than 90% was achieved.
The Ministry of Health, together with the Autonomous Communities and the National Epidemiological Center of the Carlos III Health Institute, within the framework of the National Epidemiological Surveillance Network, assessed the effectiveness and impact of this measure in preventing severe RSV. defined as requiring hospitalization for treatment.
Results show that this immunization reduced the risk of RSV-related hospitalization by 83% in immunized children under 6 months of age, confirming the effectiveness observed in previous clinical studies.
At the population level, there was a 75% reduction in the number of hospitalizations in the group of children under 1 year of age compared with the estimated number of hospitalizations in this group. This means almost 10,000 hospitalizations have been avoided. These results were published in the scientific journal of the International Society of Influenza and Other Respiratory Viruses.
Spain was the first country in the world to use nirsevimab so widely, and thanks to the commitment of health workers and the trust of parents, high coverage has been achieved for this preventive measure, which, together with its high effectiveness, has led to a great impact in reducing the burden of disease caused by this virus. in our country and the associated healthcare overload.