'Horrific' RSV crisis could be the first of further outbreaks

Embargoed until: Publicly released: 2021-08-13 00:01

New Zealand

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Experts warn this winter’s RSV outbreak may be just the first respiratory crisis sparked by altered links between pathogens and people caused by COVID-19. They say children urgently need to be protected against other looming threats - like the flu, measles, and pneumococcal disease. Whether kids need hospital treatment for RSV varies massively by ethnicity and deprivation - e.g. for babies and toddlers under 4, hospitalisation is 4 times higher for Pasifika compared with European children. The authors say the childhood immunisation programme has failed, and recommend the flu vaccine is offered free to all kids.