preventive treatment possible for all babies under one year old

This is a first in France. With the winter bronchiolitis epidemic expected to begin soon, a major campaign to protect babies will begin on Friday September 15. A new free preventive treatment against the RSV virus, responsible for this very common respiratory disease in infantis now offered free of charge to newborns in maternity wards, and in town to children under one year old born from February 6.

The solution, proposed by the French Sanofi and Swedish-British AstraZeneca laboratories, is not a vaccine. It is more precisely a monoclonal antibody: beyfortus. The product can be collected from the pharmacist with the doctor’s prescription. This injection is not obligatory, but very strongly recommended by the Ministry of Health.

>> Bronchiolitis vaccine: what we know about Beyfortus developed by Sanofi, after the green light from the European Medicines Agency

Avoid 8 out of 10 hospitalizations

A single Beyfortus injection in the baby’s thigh should protect the baby’s body for six months, says Charles Wolf, vaccine manager at Sanofi France. A prevention system that has already proven itself, with “more than 83% effective against hospitalizations”. Because that’s the whole point of this brand new weapon: putting an end to the “traditional” hospitalizations of babies in winter. 2 to 3% of children under the age of one are hospitalized each year for bronchiolitis. The most serious cases concern babies who are only a few days old, with, again last winter, pediatric services being overwhelmed.

According to clinical trials, beyfortus actually prevents eight out of ten hospitalizations. Sylvain Duchenne is a pediatrician, he expects a lot from this preventive treatment.

“We hope that this vaccination will be important and well distributed, to properly protect these infants and limit complications,” he explains. “For example, hospitalizations, or even asthma caused by the virus which affects around 30% of children under one year old with bronchiolitis”

Sylvain Duchenne, pediatrician

at franceinfo