wotan wrote:
There have been 1131 cases of invasive S. pneumoniae infections reported YTD 2010, versus 366 for the same period of last year.
article about the Pneumovax vaccine and discussion of s. pneumoniae
http://articles.latimes.com/2009/aug/04 ... onia4?pg=2excerpts from article:
Pneumonia vaccine may help limit swine flu deaths
Most of the serious consequences linked to the H1N1 virus are the result of pneumonia, but the Pneumovax vaccine is underused.
The problem is that there are many causes of pneumonia, an inflammation of the lungs that interferes with breathing and can be fatal. The influenza virus itself can cause pneumonia, as can many others. Or the lungs can be invaded by a bacterium such as Streptococcus pneumoniae or Staphylococcus aureus when the patient is weakened by a viral infection. Pneumovax protects against 23 strains of S. pneumoniae.
But preliminary results presented to the CDC vaccine committee in June by Dr. Matthew R. Moore, a CDC medical epidemiologist, indicated that about 40% of swine-flu-related pneumonia had an unknown cause -- and that about 30% were caused by S. pneumoniae. This suggests that at least a third of flu-related pneumonia deaths could be prevented by vaccination.
At least 70 million Americans are in groups that the CDC recommends receive the vaccine, according to Moore. That includes about 22 million people ages 2 to 64 with chronic underlying conditions, such as diabetes and heart disease; about 3.5 million with asthma; about 30 million smokers; and all people over the age of 65, about 15 million.
Quote:
The normal target population for the pneumonia vaccine is a microcosm of those groups most likely to die or suffer serious complications from flu, so most experts say that eligible people should receive Pneumovax independent of its ability to affect the current pandemic.
But those recommendations have apparently slipped by largely unnoticed, Schaffner said.
U.S. sales of Pneumovax have not increased since June, according to John D. Grabenstein, senior director of Adult Vaccine Medical Affairs for Merck Vaccines and Infectious Diseases. Sales in Europe have risen, however, in response to similar recommendations by health authorities there.
.... maybe we need some more emphatic recommendations here....
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