Is Palivizumab Therapy Effective for Acute RSV Bronchiolitis?

Investigators from Hamad Medical Corporation, Doha, Qatar, and Providence Health Systems, Renton, WA, conducted a randomized controlled trial to assess the efficacy of palivizumab, a monoclonal antibody to respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), in treating RSV bronchiolitis in hospitalized young infants. Study participants were previously healthy children ≤3 months old with RSV bronchiolitis who presented to the Hamad Pediatric Emergency Center, Doha, Qatar, during 3 bronchiolitis seasons between May 2015 and January 2018 who required inpatient admission. The diagnosis of RSV bronchiolitis was based on a characteristic clinical presentation and a positive rapid RSV antigen test result; need for inpatient admission was based on clinical assessment. Demographic and clinical data were collected, and participants were followed …