Worrying about the RSV
Currently in her 35th week of pregnancy, Ms. Tran Thi Thanh Phuong (Ho Chi Minh City) was present at the VNVC Vaccination Center early. Although this is her second pregnancy, the worry about the health of her newborn baby is still evident. Ms. Phuong said that although her first child was lucky not to have RSV, she witnessed her friends' children having to be hospitalized for many days due to severe complications caused by this virus.
"My friend has a child with RSV and it causes many complications such as bronchitis, lower respiratory tract inflammation, causing the baby to be hospitalized for many days, which is very difficult and expensive," Ms. Phuong shared.
From those real stories, when she learned that Vietnam had an RSV vaccine for pregnant women, she did not hesitate to get vaccinated immediately.
"I am very lucky to be in the right pregnancy stage for vaccination. I decided to get vaccinated right away to create immunity for my child and protect him from the time he was in the womb," she added.
Not only Ms. Phuong, but also records at major vaccination centers show that the need to learn about and get vaccinated with RSV vaccine for pregnant women and the elderly is increasing. Especially during the changing seasons, when the weather changes suddenly, the humidity of the air is high, creating favorable conditions for respiratory diseases, including RSV, to develop and spread strongly. Proactive disease prevention with vaccines is considered the most effective and scientific solution to protect the health of high-risk groups.
Protecting children in the first months of life
According to Dr. Luong Quoc Hai - VNVC Vaccination Center, RSV virus is very dangerous for infants and young children because their immune systems are still weak. The disease can be re-infected many times and there is currently no specific treatment. Initial symptoms are often similar to common flu such as cough, fever, runny nose, but can quickly progress to pneumonia, bronchitis, respiratory failure, especially in children under 6 months old.
Dr. Hai explained: "Currently, newborns and young children do not have a direct RSV vaccine. Therefore, vaccinating mothers during pregnancy is a way to create passive immunity for their children. The antibodies from the mother will be transmitted through the placental barrier, helping to protect the baby for about the first 6 months of life - the most vulnerable stage of the baby".
The RSV vaccine being deployed in Vietnam is indicated for single doses for pregnant women from the 24th to 36th weeks of pregnancy, or for adults aged 60 and over. The protective effectiveness of the vaccine is proven to be very high. Specifically, vaccination for pregnant mothers helps reduce the risk of severe lower respiratory diseases in infants by up to 82% in the first 3 months. For the elderly, the vaccine is up to 88% effective in preventing respiratory diseases caused by RSV.
Experts recommend that parents should not be subjective and absolutely do not arbitrarily use antibiotics to treat children when there are signs of illness, because antibiotics do not work on viruses. When children have severe symptoms such as rapid breathing, shortness of breath, wheezing, fever, they need to be taken to a medical facility immediately for timely examination and treatment.
