Maternal RSV Task Force Emphasizes the Immediate Opportunity to Protect All Infants in Canada from RSV Disease

The task force white paper, released today, stresses the importance of education, communication and
awareness to allow for informed, shared decision-making

OTTAWA, ON, July 2, 2024 /CNW/ - Today, the Federation of Medical Women of Canada (FMWC) released a white paper on behalf of the recently convened Maternal RSV Task Force. The task force was brought together by the FMWC to address the urgent need for Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) prevention in infants for the upcoming 2024 - 2025 RSV season. Chief among the recommendations in the resulting white paper was a call to offer RSV protection to all infants, now. While provincial governments evaluate, create and implement possible universal programs, the Maternal RSV Task Force calls for urgent education, communication and awareness to seize this unprecedented opportunity to protect more infants from RSV disease this RSV season.

The Time is Now

Health Canada recently approved two new products offering protection against RSV in infants in the critical early months of life. These include Nirsevimab (Beyfortus^TM, Sanofi), a monoclonal antibody which can be given to newborns and infants in their first RSV season and to high-risk children up to 24 months of age in their second RSV season, and RSVpreF (Abrysvo^TM, Pfizer), a maternal RSV vaccine that can be given to pregnant women and pregnant people between 32-36 weeks' gestation. The maternal vaccine gives all infants the opportunity to have protection from RSV from 0 to 6 months through protection from their mothers. Both new products equip healthcare providers with additional prevention resources to protect more infants against this disease.

While we now have national recommendations from NACI, new provincial health programs to protect all infants from RSV are in the early stages of consideration and development and most jurisdictions will not have a provincial program in place for this RSV season. Understanding these programs take time to come into effect, we must act now. We need to protect infants as we approach the RSV season. The call to action for pregnant people today is to talk to your healthcare provider about available options to protect your baby from RSV disease.

"RSV has plagued us for years; this is the year we can prevent this disease" says Dr. Cora Constantinescu, Pediatric Infectious Disease, Calgary, FMWC Maternal RSV Task Force Member.

"We see our pregnant patients on a regular basis and offer other routine vaccines" said Dr. Shelley Ross, Family Physician and Co-Chair FMWC Maternal RSV Task Force. "To give every infant the chance for protection from RSV this 2024 -2025 season, we have the ideal opportunity to educate, inform and offer the option for maternal RSV vaccination between 32 and 36 weeks' gestation."

About the Task Force

The Maternal RSV Task Force is comprised of doctors in family medicine, pediatric infectious disease, obstetrics and gynecology, maternal fetal medicine, women's health, and pregnancy care, pharmacists, researchers and public health representation from across Canada.

The white paper serves as a call to action with critical recommendations for healthcare providers, policymakers, and the public to reduce the burden of RSV-related deaths and injury, strain on the healthcare system and society, and the trauma families endure when caring for an infant with RSV.

The white paper offers nine short-term and four long-term recommendations including education to address knowledge gaps among healthcare providers, communication about the efficacy, safety, availability and benefits of immunization and awareness among healthcare providers, pregnant people, the public and policymakers about the burden of RSV disease in infants and the available protective options. The recommendations prioritize the crucial importance of informed, shared decision-making between healthcare providers and pregnant people through clear and effective communication.

Reducing the Impact of RSV

Ottawa-based mother Jessica Cohn continues to experience the trauma RSV can cause after her second child was diagnosed at just one month old. She recounts crumpling to the floor when a team of doctors told her that her son's health was deteriorating, and he would need to be intubated. He spent two weeks in Ottawa's pediatric intensive care. It's a trauma she carried through her third pregnancy and still feels fresh today.

"I hope pregnant moms will hear my story and take action to prevent it from happening to them. It's not just the babies with preexisting conditions RSV can affect...it can affect any baby. It's that scary." said Jessica Cohn.

Discussing the new protective measures now available for infants, Ms. Cohn shared: "I'm just so happy this is all coming to fruition. As my doctor can attest, I was begging for this type of vaccine when I was pregnant with my 3rd (my pregnancy after my son who was sick with RSV)."

RSV is a highly contagious virus that can be deadly for infants, causing severe respiratory disease and hospitalization.ⁱ  While infants with certain medical conditions are at a higher risk of severe RSV disease, healthy-term infants account for the largest proportion of infants with severe RSV disease each year.^ii,iii,iv Over half of RSV-related hospitalizations in children are in patients under six months of age with the highest rate of hospitalization occurring in the first three months of life.^v,vi

"The time is now" said Dr. Vivien Brown, Family Physician and Co-Chair of the FMWC Maternal RSV Task Force. "We have excellent new options, we have the luxury of learning from other countries experiences, and we need to act now to protect infants, and we will."

For more details on the FMWC Maternal RSV White Paper and its recommendations, please visit fmwc.ca

About FMWC

The Federation of Medical Women of Canada (FMWC) is a national organization committed to the professional, social and personal advancement of women physicians and to the promotion of the well-being of women both in the medical profession and in society at large. Established in 1924, the FMWC is also an independent nation member of the Medical Women's International Association. For more information, please visit: www.fmwc.ca.

For more information, or to request an interview, please contact: Lauren Douglas, Veritas Communications, [email protected], 647-984-8518

SOURCE Federation of Medical Women of Canada