In a prespecified analysis of the DAN-RSV trial, RSV prefusion F vaccination lowered hospitalisations for RSV-related respiratory tract disease in adults aged 60 and older, with no statistical evidence that immunosuppression modified the effect. Because immunosuppressed participants carried a higher baseline risk of RSV hospitalisation, the absolute benefit of vaccination may be greatest in that group, though the analysis was not powered to rule out subgroup differences.
Key Points
- RSVpreF reduced RSV-related hospitalisations in adults aged 60 and older
- No statistical effect modification by immunosuppression status detected
- Immunosuppressed adults carried higher baseline RSV hospitalisation risk
Longevity Analysis
Respiratory infection remains one of the fastest routes from independent function to irreversible decline in older adults, and a single hospitalisation can trigger deconditioning, delirium, and loss of reserve that never fully recovers. Immune defences weaken with age and pharmacological suppression, so the value of vaccination lies less in a measured antibody response than in preventing the acute inflammatory and respiratory burden that destabilises circulation, muscle, and cognition simultaneously. Identifying who carries the highest baseline risk — rather than treating all older adults as a single population — is what converts a general recommendation into a targeted, consistently applied protective practice.
Original published by The Lancet Healthy Longevity, by Anne Marie Reimer Jensen, Mats C Højbjerg Lassen, Niklas Dyrby Johansen, Sine H Christensen, Negar Aliabadi, Kristoffer G Skaarup, Daniel Modin, Kira Hyldekær Janstrup, Brian L Claggett, Carsten S Larsen, Lykke Larsen, Lothar Wiese, Michael Dalager-Pedersen, Matias G Lindholm, Maria Dons, Katrine F Bernholm, Filip S Davidovski, Lisa S Duus, Camilla I Ottosen, Anne B Nielsen, Julie H Borchsenius, Caroline Espersen, Guldas Köse, Frederik H Fussing, Lars Køber, Scott D Solomon, Jens Ulrik Stæhr Jensen, Cyril Jean-Marie Martel, Bradford D Gessner, Claudia Schwarz, Elisa Gonzalez, Mette Skovdal, Pingping Zhang, Elizabeth Begier, Tor Biering-Sørensen.