Improved battle plan against pneumonia

KARACHI: The vaccine against pneumococcal diseases, such as pneumonia, has been changed. A newly approved 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (Prevnar-13) has replaced the 7-valent version in new recommendations for the prevention of Streptococcus pneumoniae from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).

As with the older version, the new vaccine will be administered in four doses, at ages two, four, six and 12 to 12 to 15 months, according to a policy statement from the AAP’s infectious diseases committee.

The recommendations, published online in Pediatrics, are identical to the ones issued by the Advisory Committee on Immunisation Practices when the 13-valent vaccine was approved in February.

The vaccine is recommended for healthy children up to 59 months of age and in the case of children at a high risk of invasive pneumococcal disease, it is recommended to be used till the children are up to 71 months old.

Incomplete courses of the 7-valent vaccine should be completed with the 13-valent version, according to the guidance.

Use of the 7-valent vaccine became routine after it was approved in 2000, which resulted in a dramatic reduction in invasive pneumococcal disease. When it was introduced, 80 per cent of cases were attributed to S. pneumoniae serotypes included in the vaccine. However, the majority of cases of invasive disease currently are caused by serotypes not included in the 7-valent vaccine, highlighting the need for a product with wider coverage.

The newly approved 13-valent vaccine, which includes the seven serotypes in the older vaccine plus another six, should prevent about 63 per cent of cases of invasive pneumococcal disease, according to a report in Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report published in March, 2010.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 22^nd, 2010.