The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved on Wednesday a second vaccine, developed by Pfizer Laboratories, against the respiratory syncytial virus responsible for bronchiolitis, a month after the approval of the first vaccine.
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved on Wednesday a second vaccine, developed by Pfizer Laboratories, against the respiratory syncytial virus responsible for bronchiolitis, a month after the approval of the first vaccine.
And at the beginning of May, the “FDA” approved the “Arixvi” vaccine developed by the British “GSK” laboratories, which is the first of its kind in the world. The “Arixvi” vaccine is allowed to be given only to the elderly, as is the “Apreveso” vaccine from Pfizer.
Officials from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the reference authority for public health in the United States, are scheduled to meet June 21 to outline recommendations for use of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccines in the elderly.
And if the conclusions of this meeting are favorable to it, Pfizer Laboratories intends to market its vaccine “Apreso” in the third quarter of this year, that is, before the fall, a period that traditionally witnesses the return of seasonal infections with bronchiolitis.
Pfizer has also requested permission to develop a vaccine for pregnant women that would allow the immunization of young children. In mid-May, a committee of independent experts recommended the FDA to approve this vaccine, but the agency has not yet issued its decision.
Respiratory syncytial virus is a common and contagious virus known to cause bronchiolitis (infection of the small airways) in young children during the winter.
It also affects adults, and may be dangerous for the elderly when it turns into a respiratory infection (bronchiolitis or pneumonia).
According to US health authorities, this virus causes the death of between six thousand and ten thousand people aged 65 years and over in the United States each year, and between 60 thousand and 160 thousand hospitalizations.
It is also responsible for hospitalizing 58,000 to 80,000 children under the age of five each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
