Pneumococcal vaccine does not appear to protect against pneumoniaJanuary 06, 2009Commonly used pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccines do not appear to be effective for preventing pneumonia, found a study by a team of researchers from Switzerland and the United Kingdom http://www.cmaj.ca/press/pg48.pdf. In many industrialized countries, polysaccharide pneumococcal vaccines (PPVs) are currently recommended to help prevent pneumococcal disease in people aged 65 and over and for younger people with increased risk due to conditions like HIV. Studies have shown conflicting results regarding the efficacy of PPV. The study, a systematic review and meta-analysis, looked at 22 clinical trials, reviews and meta-analyses and more than 100,000 participants from countries in North America as well as India, Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean. Unlike other similar studies the authors examined the reasons why different clinical trials produced different results. They found that the quality of the studies substantially affected the results. When only high quality trials were included, there was no evidence that PPVs could prevent pneumonia. The study adds to the ongoing debate around effectiveness of the vaccine. "Policy makers may therefore wish to reconsider their current recommendations for PPV, especially where routine pneumococcal conjugate immunization has been introduced," conclude Dr. Matthias Egger from the University of Bern, Switzerland and coauthors. However, in a related commentary http://www.cmaj.ca/press/pg18.pdf, Dr. Ross Andrews and coauthor from the Menzies School of Health Research, Darwin, Australia state that the researchers' conclusions exceed the evidence presented. They caution that there should be no change in vaccine policy in countries that recommend PPV to prevent invasive pneumococcal disease. Canadian Medical Association Journal |
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| Related Pneumococcal Current Events and Pneumococcal News Articles Inappropriate sepsis therapy leads to fivefold reduction in survival Patients experiencing septic shock who receive inappropriate therapy may have a fivefold reduction in survival, shows a new study. Scientists create NICE solution to pneumonia vaccine testing problems Medical clinics the world over could benefit from new software* created at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), where a team of scientists has found a way to improve the efficiency of a pneumonia vaccine testing method developed at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB). Review: Pneumococcal conjugate vaccines effective at preventing child deaths A study published in The Cochrane Review this month concludes that pneumococcal conjugate vaccines (PCV), already known to prevent invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) and x-ray defined pneumonia, was also effective against child deaths. New WHO data underscores global threat of the world's leading child killer New World Health Organization data to be published in this week's edition of the Lancet will shed new light on two leading causes of pneumonia, the world's leading killer of children under age 5, both globally and within specific countries. New vaccine shows promise for COPD patients at risk for pneumonia A new vaccine against pneumonia may offer better protection from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients than the currently accepted vaccine, according to recent research that will be published in the September 15 issue of the American Journal of the Respiratory and Critical Care Journal, a publication of the American Thoracic Society. How meningitis bacteria attack the brain A specific protein on the surface of a common bacterial pathogen allows the bacteria to leave the bloodstream and enter the brain, initiating the deadly infection known as meningitis. NIAID set to launch clinical trials to test 2009 H1N1 influenza vaccine candidates Scientists in a network of medical research institutions across the United States are set to begin a series of clinical trials to gather critical data about influenza vaccines, including two candidate H1N1 flu vaccines. Statins don't lower risk of pneumonia in elderly Taking popular cholesterol-lowering statin drugs, such as Lipitor® (atorvastatin), does not lower the risk of pneumonia. From poison to prevention One of the major challenges in modern vaccinology is to engineer vectors that are highly infectious, yet don't cause illness. Trickier still is to ensure that such weapons against infectious disease can be safely disarmed, once their immunogenic work is done. Mayo Clinic study finds increased risk of pneumococcal disease in asthma patients Mayo Clinic research shows adults with asthma are at increased risk of serious pneumococcal disease caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae, the most common bacteria causing middle ear infections and community acquired pneumonia. More Pneumococcal Current Events and Pneumococcal News Articles |
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