HALIFAX – A Halifax hospital is joining in international efforts to help protect children against a potentially dangerous virus.
Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a common illness that almost all children under the age of three contract.
RSV causes coughing, wheezing and difficulty breathing. The majority of cases never escalate, although it can sometimes be fatal.
According to PATH, an international health organization, up to 199,000 children worldwide die from the illness every year, the majority of whom live in developing countries.
Now the Canadian Centre for Vaccinology (CCFV) in Halifax is running a study in hopes of learning more about the virus.
Dr. Joanne Langley, a vaccine researcher and pediatric infectious disease specialist at the CCFV, said there is no vaccine for RSV yet, although there is a drug available for high-risk babies.
“We’d like to prevent RSV because there’s really no good treatment for it,” she said.
Langley said the study will examine how much protection a baby gets from the mom’s antibodies.
“When the fetus is in the womb, the mom is taking care of it. The mom’s health has a lot to do with the health of the baby,” she said.
Researchers at CCFV are enrolling between five and 10 pregnant women every month to examine the antibody levels in their cord blood after they give birth.
Langley said the goal is to eventually develop a vaccine that could be given to pregnant women during their third trimester to give them a high level of antibody that could be transferred to the baby.
The study is international in scope but Langley said the CCFV and IWK may be the only Canadian hub.
A vaccine is something that would interest Halifax mother Stephanie Hachey.
The 27-year-old has a three-year-old daughter who contracted RSV, an experience she describes as very scary.
“It was hard for her to breathe. She was in the hospital for two weeks on oxygen. She was very raspy,” Hachey said.
“We were [in hospital] for two weeks. The fact it lasted that long was terrifying.”
The mother of two said she would not hesitate to get vaccinated for RSV if possible.
“I don’t think there’s much I wouldn’t take if it would help protect any illness in my children.”
Fellow mother Karla MacNeil was fortunate that her three children did not get RSV, but the nurse knows how scary it can be.
“I’ve worked in a hospital. I’ve seen children get sick because of it. If you can prevent something like that from happening, then it’s a wonderful thing,” MacNeil said.
She is hopeful a vaccine will one day be developed.
“It would definitely be appealing for people who work in high risk areas like myself. Why would you not take something to help prevent your child from getting sick?”
Family physician Howard Conter said he often sees patients in his practice as a result of RSV but notes it is important for the virus to be put into perspective.
“It affects our youngest and most unable to take care of themselves. It certainly is significant,” he said. “But in most cases, kids will get RSV and they’ll do very well. They won’t require going to the emergency. They won’t require going to their family doctor. They’ll just get better by themselves.
He said a vaccine could help ease the burden.
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