Pneumococcal infection and vaccination in the elderly.
The burden of pneumococcal disease among elderly people is not widely known. In most countries, the annual incidence of invasive pneumococcal disease in elderly people is most probably >50 cases/100000 persons. Over the past 20 years, only the United States has used pneumococcal vaccine to any appreciable extent, yet among all vaccine-preventable diseases, pneumococcal infections account for the largest proportion of still unprevented illness in Western Europe. Retrospective studies show that vaccination prevents invasive pneumococcal disease. Pneumococcal vaccination appears to be more cost-effective than any other medical intervention commonly used in the elderly. As new data confirm the benefits of vaccination of the elderly against pneumococcal infections, vaccine use has increased in recent years associated with a decline in invasive disease.
Aventis Pasteur, Medical Department for Central and Eastern Europe, Richard-Strauss-Str. 33, A-1230, Vienna, Austria. clemens.vlasich@aventis.com
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D000368:Aged; D003362:Cost-Benefit Analysis; D014943:Global Health; D006801:Humans; D011008:Pneumococcal Infections / Q000191:economics / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000276:immunology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D022242:Pneumococcal Vaccines / Q000191:economics / Q000494:pharmacology*
D022242:Pneumococcal Vaccines