17 October 2017
Women in Bristol take part in world-first late-stage RSV vaccine study during pregnancy
Pregnant women in Bristol are among the first in the world to
participate in a clinical trial of an investigational vaccine which
could protect babies against severe RSV disease.
Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), causes infections in the
lungs and breathing passages, and affects nearly all infants by the
age of two.
RSV is capable of infecting all age populations, including
adults and older children, but often in these populations, it only
causes mild cold-like symptoms. However, in vulnerable
populations, such as younger babies and older adults, RSV can lead
to life-threatening lung infections such as bronchiolitis and
pneumonia, and could lead to death. In babies, RSV results in
around 30 deaths a year in the UK, and has even greater mortality
in lower income countries.
During the winter months the virus causes epidemics responsible
for up to one in six hospital admissions in children less than a
year old every year and, long-term, can lead to the development of
a persistent wheeze and asthma.
Now, doctors at University Hospitals Bristol NHS Foundation
Trust are offering women receiving antenatal care at St Michael's
Hospital the chance to participate in a trial with this
investigational RSV vaccine designed to generate proteins in the
mother's blood - known as antibodies - which can pass to babies in
the womb, and once born, will hopefully protect the babies for a
minimum of three months.
Antibodies recognise foreign substances such as germs and alert
the immune system, which attempts to destroy them and/or stop them
from replicating.
Immunisation in pregnancy is already used to protect babies
against diseases such as whooping cough, tetanus and influenza and
study investigators hope that this investigational RSV vaccine will
be similarly effective at preventing RSV disease.
"RSV is the leading cause of hospitalisation in young children
and globally millions of children are affected by RSV every year"
said Professor Adam Finn, a consultant in paediatric infectious
diseases at Bristol Royal Hospital for Children.
"An effective vaccine could prevent thousands of babies a year
having to be admitted to hospital in the UK and around the world
and has the potential to save hundreds of thousands of lives."
Prof Finn, who is also a professor of paediatrics at the
University of Bristol, added: "This is the first time in 50 years
of research that a potential RSV vaccine has been developed for use
in pregnancy to prevent RSV disease right from birth, so we are
very excited to be part of such an exciting international
study."
The trial, which is also being run at the John Radcliffe
Hospital in Oxford, St Georges NHS Foundation Trust in London,
University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust and will
involve between 4600-8,000 women worldwide, is being funded by
Novavax Inc., a clinical-stage biotechnology company based in the
United States, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
If your expected date of delivery is before the 11/12/2017 and
you are currently less than 36 weeks pregnant and would like more
information, please contact:
Email: Research_St.Michaels@uhbristol.nhs.uk
Telephone: 0117 3425503 or 0117 3425756
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