title: Concomitant use of the oral pentavalent human-bovine reassortant rotavirus vaccine and oral poliovirus vaccine.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The live oral pentavalent rotavirus vaccine (PRV) is well tolerated and highly efficacious against rotavirus gastroenteritis. This open-label, multicenter study evaluated the immunogenicity and safety of coadministering oral poliovirus vaccine (OPV) with PRV.
  
  
  METHODS
  From 2005 to 2006, healthy 6- to 12-week-old Latin American infants were randomized to PRV and OPV concomitantly or PRV 2-4 weeks before OPV. Three doses of each vaccine were administered 8-10 weeks apart. Subjects did not receive OPV at birth. Routine licensed pediatric vaccines were allowed. Antibody responses to PRV and OPV were evaluated 42 days after the last dose of each vaccine. Adverse events were recorded for 14 days after each study visit.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In the concomitant-use group (n = 372), more than 98% of subjects achieved serum-neutralizing antibody titer > or = 1:8 against poliovirus types 1, 2, and 3. The poliovirus seroprotection rate in the concomitant-use group was statistically noninferior to the staggered-use group (n = 363). The immunoglobulin A (IgA) antirotavirus geometric mean titer was 46% lower in the concomitant-use group than in the staggered-use group. However, concomitant use elicited a > or = 3-fold increase (from predose 1 to postdose 3) in serum antirotavirus IgA in 93% of subjects and achieved the definition of noninferiority. Both regimens were similarly well tolerated.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  PRV did not interfere with immune responses to OPV. Although coadministration with OPV reduced serum antirotavirus IgA geometric mean titer, seroresponse rates were high and consistent with those observed in previous studies showing high vaccine efficacy. These results support including PRV in vaccination schedules involving OPV.
authors.affiliation: Vaccine Biologics-Clinical Research, Merck Research Laboratories, North Wales, PA 19454, USA. max_ciarlet@merck.com
authors.forename: Max
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ciarlet
authors.forename: Ramei
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Sani-Grosso
authors.forename: Guojun
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Yuan
authors.forename: Guanghan F
authors.initials: GF
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Penny M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Heaton
authors.forename: Keith M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Gottesdiener
authors.forename: José L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Arredondo
authors.forename: Florian
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Schödel