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A new vaccine to combat a common winter virus is set to be rolled out across Gwent from this September.
Aneurin Bevan University Health Board has said the jab could prevent 1,000 young children in Wales going to hospital each year – and save the lives of more than 100 older people annually.
Why is Caerphilly in Gwent?
Caerphilly County Borough was formed on April 1, 1996, by the merger of the Rhymney Valley district of Mid Glamorgan with the Islwyn borough of Gwent.
Administratively, for local services such as the police and health, the borough now falls under a wider region referred to as Gwent. This comprises the council areas of Caerphilly, Newport, Torfaen, Blaenau Gwent and Monmouthshire.
The jabs would combat respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), which is a common winter virus which almost all children will have had by the age of two.
It is common for older children and adults to have the virus again.
For most people, RSV causes a mild illness such as a cough or cold, but babies under the age of one year, and older people, are at risk of being seriously unwell from the virus.
The health board says the virus has a big impact on the NHS during winter months, with more than 33,000 children under the age of five having to go to hospital each year due to the virus.
The number of people going to hospital because of RSV has increased in the last 20 years, the health board added.
It is hoped the vaccine will help reduce the number of hospital admissions due to the virus.
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