Seven-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine in pediatric solid organ transplant recipients: a prospective study of safety and immunogenicity.Pediatr Infect Dis J. 2009 Aug; 28(8):688-92.PI
OBJECTIVES
To determine the safety and immunogenicity of the conjugate pneumococcal vaccine (PCV7) in pediatric solid organ transplant recipients.
PATIENTS AND METHODS
Pediatric solid organ transplant recipients were prospectively enrolled at > or =4 months following transplantation. Eligible pneumococcal vaccine-naive subjects received 3 doses of PCV7 at 8 week intervals, followed 8 weeks later by a dose of the 23-valent vaccine (PV23). Serology was done at baseline, 8 weeks following doses 2 and 3 of PCV7 and 8-12 weeks after PV23. Repeated measures analyses were done using SAS 9.
RESULTS
Eighty-one recipients commenced immunization at a median age of 7.8 (0.6-17.5) years and a median time from transplantation to immunization of 1.3 (0.3-6.0) years. There were 31 heart, 18 liver, 5 lung, and 27 kidney recipients. Reported adverse events following vaccine doses included local reactions (PCV7: PV23 = 19%:16%) and fever (PCV7: PV23 = 3.8%:4.9%) and there were no serious reactions. Two doses of PCV7 induced > or =2 fold increases in geometric mean concentrations (GMCs) in all organ groups. Cardiac and lung recipients demonstrated additional benefit from a third dose of PCV7. The cardiac recipients showed most benefit from boosting with PV23 with significant increases in GMC's (P < or = 0.008). The time of initiation of the vaccine strategy posttransplantation predicted seroprotection.
CONCLUSION
PCV7 was safe and immunogenic in solid organ recipients. Three doses of this vaccine appear beneficial for selected organ groups. PV23 when administered at >/=1 year posttransplantation was useful in boosting antibody responses in patient groups demonstrating lower rates of responsiveness.