Hanoi (VNS/VNA) - Health experts highlighted the role of maternal immunity in preventing respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)-related respiratory diseases in newborns at a symposium in the northern city of Hai Phong.
The event, themed 'Maternal Immunisation in Vietnam and Worldwide Today', was jointly organised by the Vietnam Association of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (VAGO) and Pfizer Vietnam.
The forum aimed to underscore scientific advances in preventive measures for pregnant women while enhancing the capacity of obstetric and gynaecological healthcare professionals in providing counselling and ensuring the safe and effective implementation.
Health experts emphasised the crucial role of maternal antibody transfer and its significance in helping protect infants during the first months of life.
Speakers also addressed three pressing topics, including the role, challenges and future prospects of maternal immunisation in protecting young children from infectious diseases; maternal immunity as a preventive approach to protect newborns from RSV-related pneumonia; and strategies to strengthen community-wide protection against RSV.
According to experts, during pregnancy, changes in the body and immune system make mothers more vulnerable to infectious diseases, which can affect not only their own health but also that of their babies before and after birth.
Meanwhile, the first months of life are when newborns are most vulnerable to infectious diseases, as their immune systems are still immature and direct immunisation at this stage is often less effective. During this period, babies rely mainly on passive antibodies passed from their mothers to stay protected until they can develop their own active immunity.
This is why maternal immunisation is considered a key solution, protecting babies from the moment they are born through the transfer of antibodies from mother to child. Antibodies generated in mothers (boosted with vaccines) are not only stronger than natural antibodies in babies but also last for at least six months after birth, helping reduce the risk of infection and mortality in newborns.
One of the leading causes of infections in newborns and young children worldwide is acute lower respiratory tract disease caused by RSV. According to the World Health Organization, nearly all children will have been infected with RSV at least once by the age of two.
Statistics show that in 2019, there were an estimated 33 million cases of acute lower respiratory tract infections associated with RSV. Each year, RSV leads to more than 3.6 million hospitalisations and claims the lives of over 100,000 children under the age of five, with 97 per cent of these deaths occurring in low- and middle-income countries where access to healthcare remains limited.
At the symposium, Dr Huynh Nguyen Khanh Trang, Head of Obstetrics at Hung Vuong Hospital, said: “Hospitalisations due to RSV occur most frequently in the first three to six months of life, regardless of gestational age at birth. RSV-related lower respiratory tract infections in newborns can lead to both short- and long-term complications such as bronchiolitis, pneumonia, wheezing, acute otitis media, recurrent lower respiratory infections, impaired lung function and asthma.”
VAGO President Nguyen Viet Tien said that maternal immunisation is now proposed by many major health organisations – including the Vietnam Association of Preventive Medicine – as an important measure to protect infants in their earliest months of life. Among these, new approaches to help protect against RSV help reduce the disease burden in newborns, the group at the highest risk of severe illness and mortality from RSV.
Thanks to continued efforts in infectious disease prevention, certain approaches to protect newborns from RSV through maternal immunisation have been approved for use in many countries globally, including in Vietnam.
In parallel, leading obstetrics, gynaecology, and paediatrics associations worldwide have also discussed strategies to protect newborns from RSV through maternal immunity between the 24th and 36th week of pregnancy./.
WHO lauds Vietnam’s strides in maternal, newborn health care
WHO has worked closely with Vietnam to build and roll out national policies and technical guidelines on maternal, newborn, and child health.
