New Recommendations for Pneumococcal Vaccinations for HIV-infected Individuals

From: LalliCare Pharmacy News

It is now recommended to get both Pneumovax-23 (pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine 23-valent or PPV23) AND Prevnar-13 (conjugate vaccine 13-valent or PCV13) for HIV-infected individuals

What are these vaccines for?
Streptococcus pneumonia is a bacterium with 92 serotypes worldwide. It can be non-invasive, meaning it remains in the respiratory tract presenting as sinusitis, ear infections or pneumonia. However sometimes it can be invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD), meaning the bacterium gets in the blood stream and can manifest as bacteremia, septicemia, meningitis or bacteremic pneumonia.

  • PPV23: a polysaccharide vaccine which stimulates B Cells without help of T cells, resulting in antibodies, but no immunological memory. This vaccine covers 23 serotypes (12 of which are also in PC13) and was developed for pneumococcal disease in adults, approved for use in aged 2 yrs or older
  • PC13: a conjugated pneumococcal vaccine that stimulates T cells and B Cells resulting in a T cell-dependent immune response and immunological memory. This vaccine covers 13 serotypes and has been approved for use in Canada for ages 6 weeks or older

Why are 2 vaccines now recommended?
HIV-infected individuals are at greater risk of invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) than uninfected individuals, with an incidence 35-100 times higher observed in the developed world data. As well PPV23 has been shown to have sub-optimal effectiveness in HIV-infected individuals. Both vaccines are recommended because about 38% of reported cases of IPD among adults in BC are due to serotypes covered only by PPV23; 25% of IPD are due to serotypes found in PCV13; 25% of IPD in BC are due to serotypes not contained in either vaccine. PCV13 also promotes herd immunity by decreasing pneumococcal carriers in the nasopharynx and therefore decreasing transmission.

Where can I get these vaccines?
You can get vaccinated at LalliCare Pharmacy 250-386-5100 1139 Yates St, your doctors office or at your local health unit.

***If you have recently been immunized with PPV23, you need to wait at least 1 year until you can be immunized with the newly recommended PCV13 to ensure you have an adequate response to PPV23.

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Vancouver Island Persons Living With HIV/AIDS Society (VPWAS) 205 - 1120 Yates Street, Coast Salish Territories, Victoria, BC. V8V 3M9
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