The first doses of Beyfortus, a preventative treatment for bronchiolitis, are now on sale in French pharmacies.
- This Thursday, August 29, the first doses of Beyfortus are delivered to French pharmacies.
- According to the president of Sanofi France, which markets the preventive treatment against bronchiolitis, “600,000 doses” are ready for the 2024-2025 winter season.
- The maternity distribution campaign will take place from September 15 in mainland France.
Available for the first time in France in September 2023, Beyfortus, or nirsevimab, is a monoclonal antibody that is administered once by intramuscular injection. This medication, recommended for babies born since February 6, 2023, prevents the Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV), which causes bronchiolitis, from infecting the body by neutralizing it and protects newborns and infants within a few days after the injection.
Its effectiveness has been proven by studies conducted by the Pasteur Institute and Public Health France. “The results agree on the positive impact of nirsevimab on the bronchiolitis epidemic, with a significant reduction in the number of hospitalized infants and an estimated real-life treatment efficacy of between 76% and 81% for infants admitted to intensive care. Furthermore, the administration of nirsevimab prevented approximately 5,800 hospitalizations for bronchiolitis after emergency care between September 15, 2023 and January 31, 2024 in mainland France,” can we read in a press release.
Bronchiolitis: “600,000 doses” of Beyfortus made available for the 2024-2025 winter season
Problem: a victim of its success, this treatment, developed by AstraZeneca, was only available in maternity wards last year. At the beginning of July, the pharmaceutical group Sanofi, which markets the drug, announced that it would provide new doses to protect babies from bronchiolitis, an acute and contagious viral infection, for the 2024-2025 winter season. And it is this Thursday, August 29, that the first doses of Beyfortus are delivered to French pharmacies. “We will have 600,000 doses ready,” twice as many as the number available last year, according to Audrey Duval, president of Sanofi France, interviewed on the set of BFM BusinessAccording to the company, the maternity distribution campaign will take place from September 15 in mainland France.
Bronchiolitis Vaccines for Pregnant Women and the Elderly
While Beyfortus is reserved for babies, other treatments exist for the elderly, i.e. over 60 years old, who can also experience complications, sometimes fatal, after being infected with the Respiratory Syncytial Virus. Indeed, there is the Arexvy vaccine from GSK, but also the mRNA vaccine from the Moderna group which was recently validated by the European Union. For pregnant women, the High Authority of Health (HAS) has authorized the administration of the Abryvso vaccine, which provides protection to the mother and baby against RSV, from the eighth month of pregnancy.
