Other report says vaccine should greatly reduce rate of pneumococcal disease in children under 5
FRIDAY, March 12 (HealthDay News) -- A 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine was recently licensed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and is recommended for all children ages 2 to 59 months, as well as some older children with underlying conditions, according to a report in the March 12 issue of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. According to another report in the same issue, the vaccine could greatly reduce the prevalence of pneumococcal disease in children younger than 5 years.
The vaccine, Prevnar 13 (PCV13), from Wyeth Pharmaceuticals Inc., succeeds the earlier PCV 7 and is intended for prevention of invasive pneumococcal disease and otitis media. Children ages 60 to 71 months should receive the vaccine if they have conditions that increase the risk of pneumococcal disease or complications, the authors write. For infants and toddlers without previous PCV7 or PCV13 vaccination, the vaccine is recommended as a four-dose series at 2, 4, 6, and 12 to 15 months.
The authors of the other report write that PCV13 expands protection to six additional pneumococcal strains. In 2007, pneumococcal strains covered in PCV13 -- which was not available at the time -- caused 64 percent of all invasive pneumococcal disease cases in children younger than 5 years, according to the report. The new vaccine should greatly reduce the prevalence of the disease among that age group, the authors write.
"When PCV13 is available in the vaccination provider's office, unvaccinated children and children incompletely vaccinated with PCV7 should complete the immunization series with PCV13. If the only pneumococcal conjugate vaccine available in a provider's office is PCV7, that vaccine should be provided to children and infants who are due for vaccination; these children should complete their series with PCV13 at subsequent visits," the authors of the first report conclude.
Report 1
Report 2