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To limit the bronchiolitis epidemic and its impact on emergency services, the government launched a preventive immunization campaign with Beyfortus® in September 2023. Today, two French studies demonstrate the effectiveness of this strategy in preventing serious cases and reducing hospitalizations in infants.
Why did Europe take the Beyfortus bet?
“It is estimated that bronchiolitis affects nearly 30% of infants under 2 years old each winter, or around 480,000 cases. Each year, 2 to 3% of infants under 1 year old are hospitalized for more severe bronchiolitis.” estimates the National Medicines Safety Agency. During the 2022/23 season, the bronchiolitis epidemic was the most intense known in more than 10 years, with tens of thousands of babies hospitalized and emergency services placed under pressure from the summer months, Faced with these figures, the government launched a preventive immunization campaign on September 15, 2023, with the administration of nirsevimab (Beyfortus®), to protect infants and slow down the circulation of this virus.
Beyfortus is a nirsevimab monoclonal antibody offered as a single injection. It is not a vaccine, but rather a prophylactic treatment, that is to say preventive, against the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), the main cause of bronchiolitis.
Two studies demonstrate the effectiveness of the French strategy
To evaluate the effectiveness of the administration of Beyfortus®, two additional studies were carried out in collaboration by the Pasteur Institute and Public Health Europe: on the one hand, the estimation of the real-life effectiveness of nirsevimab against cases of RSV bronchiolitis admitted to intensive care and on the other hand, modeling work to assess the impact in terms of avoided hospitalizations.
Made public today, the results of these two studies agree on the positive impact of nirsevimab on the bronchiolitis epidemic, with a significant reduction in the number of infants hospitalized and effectiveness of the treatment in real life.
Effectiveness in preventing serious cases of 76 to 81%
The results of the study, conducted in mainland Europe from September 15, 2023 to January 31, 2024 on 288 infants, confirm the real-life effectiveness of nirsevimab in preventing serious cases of RSV bronchiolitis hospitalized in intensive care; it is estimated between 75.9% and 80.6% depending on the assumptions. “These analyzes are consistent with the results of an international clinical study conducted on 8,058 infants“, specifies the joint press release from Public Health Europe and the Pasteur Institute.
5,800 hospitalizations for RSV bronchiolitis avoided
Furthermore, researchers from the Pasteur Institute and epidemiologists from Public Health Europe have developed a mathematical model characterizing the transmission of RSV in different age groups as well as plausible scenarios for the administration of doses of nirsevimab, calibrated with the hospital and virological surveillance data from mid-2017 to February 4, 2024.
According to their results, the administration of nirsevimab avoided approximately 5,800 hospitalizations for bronchiolitis after going to the emergency room between September 15, 2023 and January 31, 2024 in mainland Europe. This corresponds to a 23% reduction in the total number of hospitalizations for RSV bronchiolitis after going to the emergency room compared to the scenario without administration.
“With one hospitalization for RSV bronchiolitis avoided for approximately 40 children treated, our study highlights the relevance of the administration of nirsevimab to reduce hospitalizations due to RSV.” estimates Simon Cauchemez, head of the Mathematical Modeling of Infectious Diseases unit at the Pasteur Institute.
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