Get ready to roll your sleeves up for ANOTHER winter jab! Health bosses approve vaccine against cold-causing illness for over-60s
A jab aimed at slashing hospital admissions and deaths among the elderly due to a cold-causing bug has been approved for use in the UK.
Regulators have given the green light to British pharma giant GSK’s jab against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), making it the first to be approved for the over-60s.
RSV is a very common infection that leads to an estimated 175,000 GP visits, 14,000 hospitalisations and 8,000 deaths among the cohort every year.
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) approved the jab, branded by Arexvy, after trial results showed it cut the risk of severe illness by 94 per cent.
The Government’s vaccine advisors have already said they would back a one-off RSV jab to over-75s, followed by a single dose to Brits as they turn 75.
Regulators have given the green light to British pharma giant GSK’s jab against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), making it the first to be approved for the over-60s
UK regulators have approved the first RSV jab for older adults (PA)
Arexvy has recently been approved for use by regulators in the US and European, while those in Japan and other countries are reviewing the jab.
It works by exposing the immune system to proteins from the surface of the virus, which triggers the body to make antibodies that can fight-off RSV.
The UK approval makes it the first jab to get the green light for RSV among older adults in Britain.
RSV is a very common virus that can cause a runny nose, cough, sneezing, fever and wheezing and usually gets better within two weeks. However, in some cases, it can lead to bronchiolitis and pneumonia, which can see patients hospitalised.
As it stands, there is no treatment for RSV, so medics aim to ease patients symptoms.
Studies suggest that RSV may hospitalise more elderly people than flu, with those suffering from diabetes, heart disease and lung disease behind most admissions.
A phase three trial of GSK’s jab, the final hurdle needed to be cleared before any drug gets approved for widespread human use, recruited 24,966 over-60s to either receive Arexvy, scientifically known as RSVPreF3, or a placebo injection.
Results, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, showed it was 82.6 per cent effective at preventing lower respiratory tract disease — such as pneumonia and bronchitis — caused by RSV infection.
The vaccine was found to be 94.1 per cent effective at stopping severe lower respiratory tract disease and 71.7 per cent effective against acute respiratory infection.
The researchers reported ‘high vaccine efficacy was observed in various age groups and in participants with coexisting conditions’.
Side effects from the jab were ‘transient, with mild to moderate severity’, the researchers wrote.
The most common side effects were headache, pain at the injection site, tiredness and joint or muscle aches or pain.
Neale Belson, senior vice president and UK general manager at GSK, said: ‘We are very excited by today’s announcement.
‘Our ambition is to help protect adults 60 years of age and older in the UK who are at risk from RSV disease, including those with underlying medical conditions, who drive the majority of RSV hospitalisations.
‘This authorisation for Arexvy means eligible adults can be vaccinated against RSV disease for the first time, reinforcing GSK’s long history of vaccine innovation.’
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