A childhood virus that returns as a problem
Respiratory syncytial virus infects almost every child by the age of two, usually as a heavy cold. Immunity from that infection is partial and short-lived, so people catch it repeatedly through life, mostly without consequence.
It becomes serious at the two ends. In infants it is the commonest cause of bronchiolitis and of winter hospital admission. In older adults, and in anyone with chronic lung or heart disease, it causes pneumonia and exacerbations that fill wards every winter alongside flu.
Check whether the NHS already covers you
There is an NHS programme for a defined older age bracket and for pregnancy, where a dose late in pregnancy passes antibodies to the baby and protects it through its first winter. Both are free.
The age bracket is specific and has been phased in, so ask your GP surgery whether you are in it before paying. As with shingles, we would rather tell you that than charge you £250 for something you were entitled to.
Timing it to the season
RSV runs through the colder months, so the useful time to have it is late summer or early autumn, before the season starts. A dose in February is not useless but it has missed most of what it was for.
It is a single dose. There is no annual repeat at present - unlike flu, it is not reformulated each year - and whether a booster will eventually be recommended is still being worked out.