Scots urged to get new RSV vaccine as thousands hospitalised
Over 75s and infants are the most at risk from the virus
Health experts are urging older Scots to accept invitations to receive a new respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine as the virus can cause severe illness in the young and old.
There were more than 1,000 cases of RSV recorded in adults aged 75 or over in Scotland between October 2022 and September 2023, with more than half (535) having to spend time in hospital as a result, according to Public Health Scotland (PHS).
RSV is a common and highly infectious virus that affects the breathing system. It generally causes mild illness with cold-like symptoms such as a runny nose, cough, fever, or decrease in appetite.
Most people recover after two to three weeks, but RSV can affect the lower airways in some people and cause severe illnesses such as pneumonia and bronchiolitis, leading to complications and hospitalisation.
RSV is also the leading cause of emergency respiratory admissions to hospital in Scotland in infants, with 1,516 children aged under one hospitalised with the virus last year.
When is there the highest risk of catching RSV?
Dr Nick Phin, director of public health science at PHS, said: "We tend to see it really starting from the end of August right through till January/February time.
"Most people get the symptoms of a cold or runny nose, a cough, sneezing, but young children or infants and older adults are at much greater risk of severe disease.
"And what I mean by that is that for adult older adults, they can end up with pneumonia, and for young infants they can end up with something called bronchiolitis, which is an inflammation of the very small airways in the chest.
"When that happens, you have a situation where the the baby is finding it difficult to breathe, they become wheezy and it's really distressing both for the child or the baby and for the parents trying to look after them.
"At that point, we tend to see, you know, them getting admitted to hospital, sometimes into paediatric intensive care units.
"So for some groups, it can be a very serious illness indeed."
Is RSV similar to COVID?
Dr Phin said: "No, it's it's quite different.
"I mean, Coronavirus tends to focus in on older adults, so I suppose there is a similarity there, but generally speaking it doesn't cause severe infection in children and in in infants, particularly in the first six months or after birth.
"So there are some differences, it's in a different family but spread in a similar way.
"The one thing that's really good is the introduction of this vaccine and we expect it to make quite a significant contribution to preventing these serious consequences of RSV.
"Each year for the last 10 years we've been offering children and special at risk groups what we call a monoclonal antibody.
"So they're given an injection maybe once a month in the run up to autumn and then throughout the winter season to try and prevent them from getting RSV.
"What this vaccine would mean is that just one injection will be needed and that will give them protection throughout the season, possibly longer."
Is RSV dangerous for babies?
Dr Phin said: "If you ask any paediatrician, they will say that the biggest worry every autumn is flu and RSV.
"RSV because it is so distressing for babies and the parents, but also because of the impact it has on those families because it can lead to, in some instances, permanent lung damage.
"So it's something that affects just under 1700 children under the age of one every season, so something that has a substantial impact on the population and we believe that giving this vaccination to pregnant mums means that when the baby is born, the antibodies that the mother developed during the pregnancy are transferred across to the baby and the baby gets protection in those first few months when it's more susceptible."
Is RSV dangerous for over-75s?
Dr Phin said: "RSV is a serious illness in older adults as well, and that's why we're introducing the RSV vaccine for people over 74 and between 74 and 80.
"And that's simply because the evidence suggests that it will be beneficial. We've not yet got the evidence for the over 80s, but there is good evidence that can prevent pneumonia from RSV in those older age groups.
Details on how to get the vaccine
Appointments are scheduled to start during August, with those turning 75 on and between August 1 and July 31, 2025 the first to receive invitations.
The vaccine will also be offered to anyone aged 75 to 79 from August 1 this year as part of a "catch up" programme, as the RSV vaccine is new to Scotland and this group could not be given it before now.
More information is available at: https://publichealthscotland.scot/news/2024/june/rsv-vaccination-programme-in-scotland/
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