May 4, 2023 – The first of several anticipated vaccine options to stop respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) in older adults has been approved by the FDA.
The vaccine, called Arexvy, is manufactured by the British pharmaceutical company GSK and is now available. this autumnThe company called it “the first RSV vaccine for older adults to be approved worldwide” after the FDA permit Wednesday.
Arexvy is approved for people aged 60 and over and studies have shown that it reduces the danger of life-threatening complications from RSV, akin to pneumonia and bronchitis, by as much as 94%.
The FDA would require GSK to further investigate the possible link between Arexvy and two serious health complications that occurred in three individuals who participated within the vaccine study. One person developed the rare immune disorder Guillain-Barré syndrome 9 days after receiving Arexvy, and two people suffered from a rare inflammation that affects the brain and spinal cord.
Between 60,000 and 120,000 persons are hospitalized for RSV annually, and the virus plays a job in as many as 10,000 deaths per 12 months amongst people ages 65 and older, the FDA noted, citing CDC data. RSV was one among three respiratory illnesses that figured prominently in last winter's “triple epidemic.”
“Older adults, especially those with underlying medical conditions such as heart or lung disease or weakened immune systems, are at high risk for severe illness from RSV,” Dr. Peter Marks, director of the FDA's Division of Vaccines, said in an announcement.
Pharmaceutical firms akin to Pfizer and Moderna are also near FDA approval of their very own versions of RSV vaccines.
Demand for the vaccines is anticipated to be strong, with pharmaceutical firms prone to earn $10 billion from RSV vaccines by 2030, and GSK alone prone to make peak sales of $2.5 billion for Arexvy, Reuters reported.