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A CDC analysis of eight RSV seasons found that 1,565 of 18,301 adults hospitalized with RSV died in the hospital or within 30 days after discharge. Of these deaths, 467 occurred after discharge to somewhere other than hospice; the study cannot determine whether RSV caused those deaths.
A CDC analysis of 18,301 adults hospitalized with RSV across eight seasons found that 8.6% died in hospital or within 30 days after discharge, highlighting deaths in the immediate post-hospital period. The findings, presented at the IDWeek annual meeting, include 467 patients who died after discharge to somewhere other than hospice, though researchers could not establish whether RSV caused those deaths.
Researchers counted 1,565 deaths during hospitalization or within 30 days of discharge among adults hospitalized with RSV from 2014 through 2024. More than half, 812, occurred in hospital. Of the 753 deaths after discharge, 286 patients had been discharged to hospice; the other 467 were discharged elsewhere. That latter group represented 2.6% of all patients in the analysis.
Michael Melgar, MD, of the CDC in Atlanta, presented the findings. He said the researchers considered deaths after discharge to somewhere other than hospice the most concerning category, because those patients may not have been expected to die within a month. Melgar said the preliminary results point to elevated mortality risk soon after hospitalization and support prevention messaging and follow-up care.
The share of hospitalized patients who died in hospital or within 30 days stayed within a range of 7.4% to 9.7% across the seasons. Death after discharge to a non-hospice destination ranged from 1.8% of hospitalized patients in 2022-2023 to 3.2% in 2019-2020. These are observed proportions in the study, not estimates of deaths directly caused by RSV.
The Risk After RSV Discharge
The results draw attention to a period that can receive less focus than the hospital stay itself: the first month after discharge. Nearly one-third of the deaths recorded after discharge were among people not sent to hospice, according to the analysis. Melgar said the findings support attention to discharge planning and early follow-up for patients leaving the hospital after RSV.
The findings also reinforce the CDC’s prevention advice for eligible adults. The agency recommends a one-time dose of any of three FDA-licensed RSV vaccines for everyone 75 or older, and for adults ages 50 to 74 at increased risk of severe RSV. Adult RSV vaccination began in the 2023-2024 season; the source report cites 75% vaccine effectiveness against RSV hospitalization. The analysis did not establish how vaccination affected the deaths it counted.
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Eight Seasons of RSV Surveillance
The CDC team used data from the Respiratory Virus Hospitalization Surveillance Network, or RESP-NET, which tracks laboratory-confirmed influenza, COVID-19 and RSV hospitalizations in 14 states. RSV cases in this analysis were identified using specified ICD-10 diagnosis codes for RSV pneumonia, bronchitis or bronchiolitis.
Most people who died in hospital or within 30 days of discharge were 65 or older (81.3%), and 89.0% had at least one underlying medical condition. Nearly half had been admitted to an intensive care unit, and 29.1% received invasive mechanical ventilation. Those who died after discharge were older on average than those who died in hospital: 85.8% versus 77.1% were at least 65. They were less likely to have had ICU admission or invasive ventilation during their stay.
The analysis spans years before and after adult RSV vaccines became available in the 2023-2024 season. Melgar said investigators did not examine vaccination status among hospitalized patients in that season, so the study cannot show whether vaccination changed the results.
“We think this latter category is the most concerning, as these patients were likely discharged home or to some higher level of care — but they were probably not expected to die within a month of the hospitalization with RSV infection.”
— Michael Melgar, MD, CDC, speaking at IDWeek
Limits on Causes and Coverage
The analysis records deaths by timing but does not establish that RSV caused each death. Some patients may have died from other conditions. The researchers also relied on clinician-driven testing, which could have led to missed RSV hospitalizations, and findings from the 14-state RESP-NET network may not represent the entire United States.
Researchers did not assess vaccination status for hospitalized patients in the season when adult vaccines first became available. The results therefore do not measure vaccine impact on mortality, nor do they establish why deaths occurred after discharge. The analysis also identifies an association between post-discharge death and factors such as older age, but it does not show that those factors caused the deaths.
Prevention and Post-Discharge Care
The CDC’s existing recommendation remains a one-time RSV vaccine dose for adults 75 or older and adults ages 50 to 74 at increased risk of severe disease. The analysis adds support, in the researchers’ view, for careful discharge planning and early follow-up after RSV hospitalization. The source material does not specify a new CDC policy, a scheduled follow-up study or a change to vaccine guidance based on these results.
Further work would be needed to clarify causes of post-discharge deaths, account for vaccination status, and assess how broadly the findings apply beyond RESP-NET’s participating states. Until then, the figures describe outcomes observed in the surveillance data rather than deaths proven to have been caused by RSV.
Key Questions
How many patients died after an RSV hospitalization?
Of 18,301 adults hospitalized with RSV from 2014 to 2024, 753 died within 30 days after discharge. The analysis counted 1,565 deaths in total when hospital deaths were included.
Does the analysis show that RSV caused these deaths?
No. The researchers counted deaths during hospitalization and within 30 days after discharge, but said deaths may not be attributable to RSV. The study does not determine the cause of each death.
What does the study say about deaths after discharge?
Among 753 post-discharge deaths, 286 patients had been discharged to hospice and 467 had been discharged elsewhere. The latter group was 2.6% of all adults in the analysis.
Who is advised to get an RSV vaccine?
The CDC recommends a one-time dose of any of three FDA-licensed RSV vaccines for all adults 75 or older, and for adults ages 50 to 74 at increased risk of severe RSV. The analysis did not examine vaccination status among hospitalized patients.
Source: rss
