The Telethon Kids Institute is looking for pregnant women to test a new vaccine against the virus.
Every year, thousands of children under the age of five are hospitalised in Australia due to respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) disease. According to a recent study, during 2006-2015 there were 63,814 RSV related hospitalisations. The vast majority (94.9%) were children under the age of five, who are at risk of developing serious conditions.
RSV is a common virus that targets the airways and lungs, and it is highly contagious. Typically, RSV affects children and older adults, but Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adults and anyone with conditions affecting their heart, lungs or immune system are also at risk.
Among children, RSV can lead to breathing problems and lung infections, including conditions like bronchiolitis and pneumonia. In fact, RSV stands as the leading cause of acute lower respiratory infections in young children, according to a study published by The Lancet.
“RSV infects the lungs and airways and is one of the most common reasons babies are admitted to hospital. The virus can be life-threatening, especially for newborn babies up to six months of age who develop severe complications such as bronchiolitis and pneumonia, and there is currently no licensed vaccine to prevent the disease,” said Prof Peter Richmond, Head of the Vaccine Trials Group in the Wesfarmers Centre of Vaccines and Infectious Diseases based at Telethon Kids Institute.
There is currently no treatment for RSV, beyond getting rest and drinking fluids and most people recover in about 10 days, whereas children may take up to 15 days to recover. However, for some children, RSV infection can become serious medical conditions requiring hospitalisation, specially among young infants.
To address the lack of effective treatment against RSV, researchers have developed RSV vaccines, which have been well tolerated and are now being tested for effectiveness in the prevention of RSV.
The RSV Vaccine study
The RSV Vaccine study is open to healthy women, aged 18 to 40 years, who are between 28 and 33 weeks pregnant. Women who take part of this study will help protect their babies from future infections by RSV. “Vaccines given during pregnancy work by the mother making antibodies that are transferred through the placenta to help protect the baby during the first few months after they are born. If we can achieve this, we can significantly reduce the number of newborns developing serious complications and being hospitalised due to this common infection in babies,” Prof Richmond said.
“Findings from RSV in pregnancies studies have the potential to impact the health of babies on a global scale for years to come,” he added.
Exclusion criteria for this study include women with gestational diabetes requiring medication, high blood pressure, a history of premature labour or women who are expecting a multiple birth.
Women taking part of this study should make a commitment for 15 months. Their participation will involve:
- Nine visits to a research clinic located at Perth Children’s Hospital.
- One jab during pregnancy, which could be the RSV vaccine or a placebo – this is randomly assigned.
- Six blood tests for you and one blood test for your baby. These tests aim to assess immune responses to the vaccine.
- Follow-up appointments throughout the study period, just in case you or your baby develop any respiratory tract problems.
For more information families, as well as GPs and obstetricians, can contact the VTG research staff at:
Phone: 0439 783 610
Email: pregnancyRSV@telethonkids.org.au