Pneumococcal vaccination for patients with spinal cord injury

Pneumococcal vaccination is recommended for persons with increased risk for pneumococcal disease or its complications. Even though recommendations for pneumococcal vaccination of the spinal cord injury (SCI) population have not been made to date, many SCI patients may qualify for vaccination. The purpose of this study was to examine the antibody response of SCI patients to polyvalent pneumococcal vaccine. Immunoglobulin G antibodies to five commonly infecting pneumococcal capsular polysaccharides were determined in 40 SCI patients and in an age-matched control of 40 able-bodied persons before and 4 to 6 weeks after vaccination. There were no significant differences in the mean antibody levels and the percentage of persons who responded to the five capsular polysaccharides in the SCI versus control groups. Among SCI patients, the antibody response was generally not affected by age, time since injury, or level of lesion. The antibody response to pneumococcal vaccination in SCI patients seems adequate.