Respiratory syncytial virus in adults with comorbidities: an update on epidemiology, vaccines, and treatments

Abstract

Background

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is widely known as a frequent cause of respiratory distress among adults, particularly in older people. Recent years have witnessed several improvements in respiratory virus detection, leading to more questions about therapeutic management strategies.

Objectives

This narrative review focuses on the RSV burden in older people and adults with risk factors and provides an update on the main recent developments regarding managing this infection.

Sources

A comprehensive PubMed search was conducted till August 2023 to identify studies on RSV among the adult population. We included observational studies, RCTs on vaccines, and different therapies.

Content

This review should give clinicians an overview of RSV epidemiology and burden among older people and adults with pre-existing risk factors, the most recent randomized clinical trials on RSV vaccines, and the existing data on the different therapeutics existing and under development.

Implications

There is a growing body of evidence on RSV burden in adults. The landscape of preventive and curative treatments is quickly evolving.