Pneumococcal Vaccination

Pronounced (noo-muh-KOK-uhl)

At a Glance

Pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13) is recommended for all children younger than 5 years old, all adults 65 years or older, and people 6 years or older with certain risk factors. Pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPSV23) is recommended for all adults 65 years or older. People 2 years through 64 years of age who are at high risk of pneumococcal disease should also receive PPSV23.

 

What You Should Know

About the Disease

• Pneumococcal disease information
  Types of infection, symptoms, treatments, transmission, etc.
• Pneumococcal Disease: So Many TreatmentsPosted May 2011
  Parent tells true story of how pneumococcal disease sickened her children and affected her family
• Images of pneumococcus and people affected with pneumococcal disease
  Warning: Some of these photos are quite graphic.
• Fact sheets about pneumococcal disease
  • Facts about pneumococcal disease
  • Pneumococcal disease: Hard to say; easy to get vaccinated [2 pages]
    Posted Aug 2011
    Facts about pneumococcal disease in adults from the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases
• Pneumonia Can Be Prevented – Vaccines Can Help
  CDC Feature
• Podcast: Prevent Pneumonia Posted May 2012
  Released 5/23/2012; Run time 4:50
  Dr. Kathleen Dooling with the CDC explains what pneumonia is, its symptoms, and how to prevent it.
• Interactive Q & A Posted Aug 2011
  Answers from a panel of experts for commonly asked questions about pneumococcal diseases in adults (National Foundation for Infectious Diseases)
• Pneumococcal basics for parents
  Fact sheet offers overview of pneumococcal disease and vaccine risks and benefits
  • In English
  • En Español

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Vaccine Information

The pneumococcal conjugate vaccine, PCV13 or Prevnar 13®, is currently recommended for all children younger than 5 years of age, all adults 65 years or older, and persons 6 through 64 years of age with certain medical conditions.

Pneumovax® is a 23-valent pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPSV23) that is currently recommended for use in all adults 65 years of age or older and for persons who are 2 years and older and at high risk for pneumococcal disease (e.g., those with sickle cell disease, HIV infection, or other immunocompromising conditions). PPSV23 is also recommended for use in adults 19 through 64 years of age who smoke cigarettes or who have asthma.

• Who needs pneumococcal vaccines and how effective are they?
  Vaccine recommendations for children and adults
  Updated Apr 2011
• Side Effects of PCV13 and PPSV23
  Excerpt from Vaccine Information Statement
• Vaccine Information Statement (VIS) (PCV13 and PPSV23)
• Questions and answers for parents about PCV13 vaccine Updated Apr 2011
• Podcast: New and Improved Vaccine
  Released 4/1/2010; Run time 4:32; Series: A Cup of Health with CDC
  CDC expert Dr. Pekka Nuorti discusses pneumococcal conjugate vaccine to prevent invasive pneumococcal disease.
• Safety and Immunogenicity of a 13-Valent Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine
  PEDIATRICS Vol. 125 No. 5 May 2010, pp. 866-875 Posted May 2010
• Lessening the Pain of Vaccines
  Techniques worth trying
• Pneumococcal conjugate (PCV13) vaccine mandates for children in day care
  Listed by state
• Global pneumococcal disease and vaccines
  PCV recommendations, advance market commitment, vaccine support resources, literature, etc.

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Beliefs & Concerns

• Myths About Pneumococcal Disease

Vaccine Safety

As with all vaccines, there can be minor reactions, including pain and redness at the injection site, headache, fatigue or a vague feeling of discomfort.

• Frequently Asked Questions about Vaccine Safety
• Monitoring Vaccine Safety
• Are vaccines safe?
  FAQs on The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia website  

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Who Should Not be Vaccinated?

• What if we stopped vaccinating for this disease?
• Who should not be vaccinated with Pneumococcal vaccine?
• Pregnancy guidelines

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For Health Professionals

Clinical Information on Pneumococcal

• PCV13 (Pneumococcal Conjugate) Vaccine (Updated Sept 2014)
  Recommendations, scenarios and Q&As for healthcare providers about PCV13
• Pink Book's chapter on Pneumococcal Disease (Updated May 2012)
  Epidemiology & Prevention of Vaccine-Preventable Diseases, 12th Edition Second Printing
• Ask the Experts about PCV13 and PPSV23
  CDC experts answer your clinical questions (Immunization Action Coalition)
• Use of Vaccines to Prevent Meningitis in Persons with Cochlear Implants
  Updated Apr 2012
• Facts about pneumococcal disease and prevention in adults
  Updated October 2012
  National Foundation for Infectious Diseases
  

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Vaccine Recommendations

• ACIP pneumococcal vaccine recommendations
• "Job-aids" with detailed scenarios by age group and previous doses of vaccine received. These materials should assist healthcare providers in interpreting Figure 2, the Childhood/Adolescent Immunization catch-up schedule.
  • Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine (PCV) Catch-Up Guidance for Children 4 Months through 18 Years of Age [3 pages]
  • Diphtheria, Tetanus, and Pertussis-Containing Vaccines Catch-Up Guidance for Children 4 Months through 18 Years of Age [4 pages]
• PCV recommendations for developing countries
• Standing Orders
• Contraindications
• Consult package inserts for vaccine storage and handling guidance: (Prevnar7, Prevnar13, Pneumovax23, and more package inserts...)
  Includes proper storage and handing details, shelf life, reconstitution instructions...
• ACIP - Vaccines for Children (VFC) Resolution Updated Feb 2013

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References and Resources

• Pneumococcal vaccine-related articles
• Pink Book's chapter on Pneumococcal Disease
  Updated May 2012
  Epidemiology & Prevention of Vaccine-Preventable Diseases, 12th Edition Second Printing
• Surveillance: Surveillance manual's chapter on Pneumococcal Disease
  Manual for the Surveillance of Vaccine-Preventable Diseases textbook
  • Active Bacterial Core surveillance
• Laboratory:
  • CDC Streptococcal Laboratory
    Scheme for identifying pneumococcal serotypes using polymerase chain reaction (PCR).
  • CDC's Pneumococcal Clone Identification
    Laboratories that conduct pulse field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) can use this info to identify...
• Global pneumococcal disease and vaccines
  PCV recommendations, advance market commitment, vaccine support resources, literature, etc.
• Travelers Health: Yellow Book
  Chapter on pneumococcal disease
• Influenza and pneumococcal (PPSV) mandates for long term care facilities
• Pneumonia Guidelines
  Resources on community-acquired and healthcare-associated pneumonia

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Provider Education

• VIDEO – Latest Adult Pneumococcal Vaccine Recommendations Posted Oct 2012
  CDC Expert Commentary in Partnership with Medscape
• VIDEO – Pneumococcal Disease in Children: New Immunization Recommendations Posted May 2010
  CDC Expert Commentary in Partnership with Medscape
• Pneumococcal Polysaccharide Vaccination Pocket Guide
  Intended to be a provider's partner to help with pneumococcal vaccination

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Materials for Patients about Pneumococcal Vaccination

• Vaccine Information Statement (VIS) (PCV13 and PPSV23)
• Professional Practice Toolkit: Pneumococcal Disease Posted Aug 2011
  Resources in English and Spanish to help health care professionals educate their adult patients about pneumococcal disease (National Foundation for Infectious Diseases)
• Podcasts on immunization topics
• Stories of people who suffered or died from vaccine-preventable diseases
• Pneumococcus: Questions and Answers [4 pages]
  Ready-to-print version of one of the CDC-reviewed Q&A materials located on IAC's Vaccine Information website (http://www.vaccineinformation.org) Updated Apr 2009

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For the Media

Materials for the Media

• Background information on pneumococcal disease and vaccines for media

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