Effectiveness of meningococcal serogroup C conjugate vaccine 4 years after introduction.
The meningococcal serogroup C conjugate (MCC) vaccine programme in England has successfully controlled the incidence of serogroup C disease, as a result of high short-term vaccine effectiveness and substantial herd immunity. However, the long-term effectiveness of the vaccine remains unknown. We assessed surveillance data from the 4 years since introduction of the programme. Vaccine effectiveness remained high in children vaccinated in the catch-up campaign (aged 5 months to 18 years). However, for children vaccinated in the routine infant immunisation programme, the effectiveness of the MCC vaccine fell to low levels after only 1 year. The number of individuals in these cohorts remains low, but alternative routine immunisation schedules should be considered to ensure high levels of protection are sustained.
Trotter
Caroline L
CL
Statistics, Economics, and Modelling Department, Health Protection Agency Communicable Disease Surveillance Centre, 61 Colindale Avenue, London NW9 5EQ, UK.
Andrews
Nick J
NJ
Kaczmarski
Edward B
EB
Miller
Elizabeth
E
Ramsay
Mary E
ME
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004739:England / Q000453:epidemiology; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D032521:Immunity, Herd; D007115:Immunization Schedule; D007117:Immunization, Secondary; D007223:Infant; D008589:Meningococcal Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D022401:Meningococcal Vaccines / Q000276:immunology; D038542:Neisseria meningitidis, Serogroup C / Q000276:immunology*; D018074:Vaccines, Conjugate
D022401:Meningococcal Vaccines; D018074:Vaccines, Conjugate