Respiratory Syncytial Virus and Bacterial Pneumonia Share a Link

The uncertainty of bacterial infections following respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) paved way for a study to determine the association between pneumococcal diseases and RSV. The changes in pneumococcal disease following the introduction of seven-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV7) were associated with changes in the rate of hospitalizations coded as RSV was examined.

The study used aggregated hospitalization data from >700,000 RSV hospitalizations and >16,000 pneumococcal pneumonia hospitalizations in 36 states and data from studies with laboratory-confirmed individual-level, to confirm these findings.

The association between the incidence of pneumococcal disease in children and the activity of RSV and influenza and the rate of hospitalization after introduction of PCV7 were estimated.

RSV was associated with a significant increase in the incidence of pneumococcal pneumonia in children aged <1 year and among children aged 1–2 years.

Influenza was also associated with an increase in pneumococcal pneumonia among children aged 1–2 years.

Finally, a significant decline in RSV-coded hospitalizations in children aged <1 y following PCV7 introduction was observed.

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The analyses provide evidence for an interaction between RSV and pneumococcal pneumonia.

Source-Medindia