Saudi Arabia | Health provides the respiratory virus `RSV` vaccine in Saudi Arabia

2024-04-20 2024-04-20T11:47:11Z

Weather of Arabia - Assistant Undersecretary of the Ministry of Health for Preventive Health, Infectious Diseases Consultant, Dr. Abdullah Asiri, announced that the Saudi Ministry of Health has begun providing the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine to all individuals aged 60 years or older in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The Ministry also confirmed that infection with the respiratory syncytial virus can lead to serious infections in the respiratory system, which greatly increases the risk of heart attacks. Dr. Asiri stressed the importance of communicating with your family doctor through the “Sihati” application to book an appointment to receive the vaccine that is now available in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

What is respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)?

Answer: Respiratory syncytial virus causes infections in the lungs and airways. It is so common that most children become infected before they are 2 years old. This virus can also affect adults.

In older, healthy adults and children, symptoms of respiratory syncytial virus are often mild, similar to the symptoms of a cold. It can usually be treated by following self-care procedures.

However, the virus can cause severe infection in some people, including infants (under 12 months), especially those born prematurely, older adults, people with heart and lung disease, and those with weakened immune systems. Signs and symptoms of infection often appear four to six days after exposure to the virus, and usually include a runny or congested nose, dry cough, mild fever, sore throat, sneezing, and headache.

Saudi Arabia becomes the fifth country to offer the RSV vaccine to citizens over the age of sixty

According to the Undersecretary of the Ministry of Health, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is the fifth country to include the RSV vaccine for the age group over sixty years, and in a reciprocal move, the Ministry also intends to approve a new vaccine intended to protect infants in the first six months of their lives.

These accumulated health measures reflect Saudi Arabia's commitment to enhancing the health of its citizens, and it hopes to increase the average lifespan to 80 years by 2030 in accordance with the Kingdom's vision .