Abstract:
Background: Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) is known for the most prevalent cause of lower respiratory tract infections (LRIs) and hospitalization in children under-five worldwide. Adaptive immunity and long-lived immunological memory remain underdeveloped and attenuated in early life, taken together, result in increased susceptibility to respiratory infections. Consequently, Infants of 0-6 months of age are likely predisposed to RSV-related respiratory infections and dependant upon antibodies of maternal origin to receive immune protection. Immunization for pregnant women is thus considered alternative option to support early life immunity. This study aims to investigate whether cord blood neutralising antibody levels are sufficient for RSV infections in infants.
Methods: Literature searches were performed in electronic databases, including Pubmed, Embase, and the World of Science. Eligibility criteria were observational studies that studied infants less than 6 months with antibody titres reported. This study reviewed maternally derived RSV antibody exposure in infants on RSV infection. The included studies were meta-analysed using Random-effect model for the outcome of antibody titres.
Results: A total of 70 studies were identified during the search, of which 4 studies further met the eligibility criteria. By means of the meta-analysis, the result showed the lower antibody titres in RSV infected infants compared to uninfected infants [SMD (95%CI) = -0.58, (-1.11,-0.06)]
Conclusion: The neutralizing antibody cord blood levels transferred to infants below 6 months of age only seems inadequate yet to protect this group of infants from RSV infections. Therefore, harnessing innate immunity seems fruitful for infants’ protection against RSV infections.
