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Synagis reduces wheeze early in life in children born prematurely

Synagis prophylaxis appeared to reduce wheeze and the number of hospitalizations associated with respiratory syncytial virus in children born prematurely, according to study results.

However, the drug “does not change the long-term pulmonary outcome, including airway hyper-reactivity, as measured by pulmonary function testing at school age,” Dario Prais, MD, a pediatric pulmonologist at Schneider Children’s Medical Center of Israel, told Healio.com/Pulmonology.

Prais and colleagues conducted a prospective cross-sectional study to analyze the short- and long-term effects of Synagis (palivizumab, MedImmune) immunization on respiratory morbidity and pulmonary function at school age among children born prematurely. The analysis included 63 children aged 7 to 10 years and born before 29 weeks’ gestation from 2000 to 2003. Results were assessed by parental questionnaire, hospital chart review and lung function tests.

Less than half of patients (47.6%) received palivizumab during infancy, and among them, their parents reported minimal wheezing during the first 2 years of life (27%). By comparison, 70% of parents whose children did not receive palivizumab reported wheezing during the same period (P = .008).

Seventy percent of parents reported hospitalizations for their children who did not receive the drug, while 33% of parents whose children took palivizumab reported hospitalization during the first 2 years of life (P = .001).

Minimal differences in lung function measures occurred between the groups during school age. The researchers also reported minimal differences in total lung capacity, residual volume percent predicted and functional residual capacity percent predicted.

Prais told Healio.com/Pulmonology the current research only indicates a short-term benefit.

“The short-term results showed a marked protective effect of palivizumab on pulmonary morbidity during the first 2 years of life, as demonstrated by a significant reduction in hospital admissions and wheezing episodes,” he said. “However, by the time the children reached school age, no significant differences were found in pulmonary function between the groups, indicating that palivizumab had an early, but not a long-term protective effect on this population.” – by Ryan McDonald

Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.