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Burden of paediatric invasive pneumococcal disease in Europe, 2005
E D G McIntosh1, B Fritzell, M A Fletcher
1Global Medical Affairs, Wyeth Europa, Vanwall Road, Maidenhead, Berks SL6 4UB, UK. mcintod@wyeth.com
Insights
Documenting invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) burden in European children is crucial for immunization policies. Pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV) coverage varies, highlighting the need for coordinated vaccination strategies to prevent childhood illness.
Area of Science:
- Epidemiology
- Public Health
- Vaccinology
Background:
- Coordinating effective pneumococcal immunization policies in the European Union (EU) requires accurate data on invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) burden in infants and children.
- Understanding the geographical variation in IPD incidence and serotype distribution is essential for optimizing vaccination strategies across Europe.
Purpose of the Study:
- To document the burden of invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) in countries of the European Union (EU), Switzerland, and Norway.
- To assess the serotype coverage of the 7-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV) against circulating strains causing IPD in European children.
Main Methods:
- Gathering recent epidemiological data on IPD from European affiliates of Wyeth Vaccines, including local disease surveillance programs and unpublished sources.
- Conducting a comprehensive literature search using OVID and international meeting abstracts (dating from 2000) to ensure broad representation of IPD data.
Main Results:
- Reported pediatric IPD rates varied significantly across Europe, with rates per 100,000 ranging from 1.7 in Sweden to over 174 in Spain for children under two years old.
- The 7-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV) covered 60% to 80% of circulating serotypes causing IPD in European children under two years of age.
- Discrepancies in reporting methods, under-reporting, antibiotic prescribing, and blood-culturing practices likely contribute to the observed differences in disease incidence.
Conclusions:
- National pneumococcal vaccination programs utilizing PCV have substantial potential to reduce IPD-related morbidity and mortality in Europe.
- Standardized surveillance and reporting methods are needed to accurately compare IPD burden across European countries.
- The efficacy of PCV underscores its importance in public health strategies for preventing serious childhood infections.
Abstract:
Within the European Union (EU), documenting the burden of invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) in infants and children is important for coordinating effective pneumococcal immunization policies. Our objective was to document the burden of IPD in countries of the EU plus Switzerland and Norway. European affiliates of Wyeth Vaccines made available recent epidemiological data on IPD from local disease surveillance programmes, including unpublished sources. Recent literature and websites were also searched to provide as wide a representation as possible. This included OVID and abstracts from a number of international meetings, dating from the year 2000. The reported rates of paediatric IPD per 100000 (age) ranged from a low of 1.7 (<2 years) to 4.2 (2-15 years) in Sweden to a high of 93.5 to 174 (<2 years) to 56.2 (<5 years) in Spain. The percentage of circulating serotypes causing IPD that are covered by 7-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV) IPD serotype coverage ranged from 60% to 80% for European children aged <2 years. Under reporting, differences in reporting methods, antibiotic prescribing and disparities in blood-culturing practices may explain the differences in reported disease incidence. Because of the excellent clinical efficacy of the PCV against IPD, national pneumococcal vaccination programmes in Europe have the potential to prevent much morbidity and mortality.
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