Immunization of patients with Sjögren's syndrome with pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine: a randomized trial

Thirty-two patients with Sjögren's syndrome were randomly selected to receive either multivalent pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine or saline placebo in a double-blind study. Among placebo treated patients, levels of antipneumococcal antibodies remained constant. Immunized patients developed significant elevations of antibody concentrations against all 12 capsular serotypes measured. Levels fell, but persisted above baseline, for 8 of the serotypes 6 months after immunization. During the 6-month study no clinical or serologic evidence of disease exacerbation occurred in either group. We conclude that pneumococcal vaccine can be safely and successfully administered to patients with Sjögren's syndrome.