What is the RSV vaccination?
The RSV vaccination protects against respiratory diseases caused by the RS virus (respiratory syncytial virus, RSV). RS viruses cause upper and lower respiratory tract infections that can cause severe illness, especially in infants and young children, but also in older adults or chronically ill people.
Read more about what symptoms RS viruses cause and how the respiratory disease is treated in our article on the RS virus.
What RSV vaccines are available?
RSV vaccines are divided into active and passive vaccines.
The antibodies prevent the viruses from entering the cells. Once the antibodies from the vaccine have been used up, a booster must be given. For this reason, affected individuals receive an injection every four weeks during the winter months. This is also known as passive immunization.
RSV vaccination: Who should be vaccinated?
Currently, the STIKO recommends vaccination against the RS virus for premature infants and children up to two years of age with certain pre-existing conditions. A recommendation on whether and when pregnant women and older adults should be vaccinated against RS virus is currently pending.
RSV vaccination for premature infants and babies
- Children born before or at 35 weeks gestation who are younger than six months at the start of the RSV season.
- Children under two years of age with congenital heart defects.
- Children under two years of age who have been treated for bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) in the past few months.
RSV vaccination for older adults
The European Commission has approved active RSV vaccination for adults in June 2023. It is intended to protect people aged 60 and older from lower respiratory tract diseases caused by the RS virus.
Despite its approval, the vaccine for adults is not yet on the market. It should be available in German pharmacies from the fall – at the start of the RSV season. Whether the vaccination recommendation applies to all persons aged 60 and over or only to certain risk groups is still open. An official vaccination recommendation from the STIKO is still pending.
RSV vaccination in pregnancy
RSV vaccination during pregnancy is thought to protect newborns from RS-related respiratory illness after birth. A large-scale vaccination study found that 81 percent of all infants whose mothers were vaccinated against the RS virus during pregnancy were protected from severe disease progression during the first six months of life.
The European Commission approved the vaccine for pregnant women on Aug. 25, 2023. It can be used immediately in all EU member states.
RSV vaccination: side effects
Possible side effects of RSV vaccination in adults include headache, fatigue, muscle pain, joint pain, and pain at the injection site. The symptoms are usually harmless and subside within about 10 days.
Serious side effects of vaccination include anaphylactic shock (anaphylaxis). This is a hypersensitivity reaction to a component of the vaccine. In order to be able to intervene quickly in the event of anaphylaxis, vaccinees are monitored for some time after the injection.
RSV vaccination: costs
For premature infants, babies and young children, health insurance companies cover the costs of vaccinations against the RS virus if they belong to the risk group.
