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Volume 32, Number 1—January 2026

Research

Reduced Emergency Department Visits and Hospitalizations in Infants after Universal Respiratory Syncytial Virus Immunization, Italy, 2024–25

Simone Villa1Comments to Author , Simona Scarioni1, Enrico Pigozzi, Manuel Maffeo, Mauro Maistrello, Giorgio Bagarella, Francesco Scovenna, Federica Morani, Marlen Romano, Gianvincenzo Zuccotti, Massimo Agosti, Catia Borriello, Elena Pariani, Guido Bertolaso, Luigi Vezzosi, Fausto Baldanti, Mario Melazzini, Elena Azzolini, Gabriele del Castillo2, Danilo Cereda2, and Regional Immunization Council3
Author affiliation: Directorate General for Health, Lombardy Region, Milan, Italy (S. Villa, S. Scarioni, E. Pigozzi, M. Maffeo, M. Maistrello, G. Bagarella, F. Scovenna, F. Morani, C. Borriello, G. Bertolaso, L. Vezzosi, M. Melazzini, G. del Castillo, D. Cereda); University of Milan, Milan (S. Villa, S. Scarioni, E. Pigozzi, F. Scovenna, G. Zuccotti, E. Pariani); Regional Company for Innovation and Purchasing Aria S.p.A., Milan (M. Romano); Buzzi Children’s Hospital, Milan (G. Zuccotti); Hospital “F. Del Ponte,” University of Insubria, Varese, Italy (M. Agosti); Fondazione IRCCS Policlinico San Matteo, Pavia, Italy (F. Baldanti); University of Pavia, Pavia (F. Baldanti); Humanitas University, Pieve Emanuele, Italy (E. Azzolini)

Main Article

Table 2

Impact of universal RSV immunization on EDVs and hospitalization in children <12 months of age and those 1–5 years of age, Italy, 2024–25*

Age cohort Indicator activity, winter 2024–25
 Difference in indicator activity
Predicted (95% UI) Observed Absolute change % Change (95% UI)
Children <12 mo
LRTI
EDVs 3,347 (3,067–3,627) 1,918 −1,429 −42.7 (−48.1 to −37.3)
Hospitalizations 2,316 (2,120–2,513) 1,240 −1,076 −46.5 (−51.9 to −41.0)
RSV infection
EDVs 523 (456–590) 265 −258 −49.3 (−58.2 to −40.4)
Hospitalizations
 607 (523–691)
 273
−334
 −55.0 (−63.2 to −46.8)
Children 1–5 y
LRTI
EDVs 287 (262–312) 393 106 36.9 (18.9–55.0)
Hospitalizations 160 (145–176) 225 65 40.6 (17.6–63.6)
RSV infection
EDVs 68 (55–80) 116 48 70.6 (26.5–114.7)
Hospitalizations 46 (36–55) 75 29 63.0 (13.0–113.0)

*EDV, emergency department visit; LRTI, lower respiratory tract infection; RSV, respiratory syncytial virus; UI, uncertainty interval.

Main Article

1These authors contributed equally to this article and share first authorship.

2These authors contributed equally to this article and share last authorship.

3Members of the Regional Immunization Council are listed at the end of this article.

Page created: December 13, 2025
Page updated: January 07, 2026
Page reviewed: January 07, 2026
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