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 Vol. 18 No. 1, July 2007
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AAP Grand Rounds 18:1-2 (2007)
© 2007 American Academy of Pediatrics

HEMATOLOGY/ONCOLOGY

The Effect of the Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine on Children with Sickle Cell Disease

Source: Halasa NB, Shankar SM, Talbot TR, et al. Incidence of invasive pneumococcal disease among individuals with sickle cell disease before and after the introduction of the pneumococcal conjugate vaccine. Clin Infect Dis. 2007;44:1428–1433; doi: 10.1086/516781[CrossRef][Medline]

The first 20% of the full text of this article appears below.

Prior to the initiation of newborn screening coupled with penicillin prophylaxis, invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) was the leading cause of death in children with sickle cell disease (SCD).1 Despite the enormous impact of penicillin prophylaxis, as well as the availability of the pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPV), pneumococcal infections continue to be a major cause of death in pediatric sickle cell patients.2 The 7-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV) became available in 2000 and was recommended for all children under age two years and for older children with high-risk conditions such as SCD.3 Although several investigators have reported a significant decrease in the incidence of IPD in the general pediatric population,4 no studies have examined the effect of the vaccine on sickle cell patients.

Investigators from Vanderbilt University and St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital sought to determine the incidence of IPD in Tennessee patients with SCD before and after introduction of PCV. They identified individuals with SCD through the 1995–2004 Tennessee Medicaid database. Patients with a history of IPD were identified by a prospective laboratory-based surveillance program run . . . [Full Text of this Article]

Anthony D. Villella, MD, FAAP
Pediatric Hematology/Oncology, Case Western Reserve University, Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital, Cleveland, OH