Assessing the burden of respiratory syncytial virus disease in Australia

National reporting for all age groups is needed to accurately determine the full burden of disease

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a pathogen of global importance, responsible each year for more than 33 million infections, 3.2 million hospitalisations, and 59 600 in‐hospital deaths of children under 5 years of age.1 The full burden of disease is likely to be much higher, as 50% of deaths occur outside hospitals.2 The World Health Organization regards RSV vaccine development as a global priority,3 and RSV vaccines have been short‐listed for the Global Vaccine Alliance (Gavi) vaccine investment strategy; several vaccine candidates and monoclonal antibodies are being investigated, and it is anticipated that commercial vaccines will be available by 2025.4,5 Gaps in knowledge about the epidemiology of RSV — accurate burden of disease estimates, its long term effects, seasonal transmission dynamics, the cost of RSV‐related disease — need to be filled to guide vaccine policy and implementation.6