(Reuters) – Advisors to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Wednesday recommended expanding the use of the vaccine to adults ages 50 to 64 to prevent pneumococcal disease.
The CDC currently recommends that all children under the age of 5 and all adults over the age of 65 be vaccinated against this disease.
Vaccination is also recommended for some children and adults with certain conditions.
The agency’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices voted 14-1 in favor of expanding use of the vaccine to all adults age 50 and older.
A CDC work group on the same day endorsed use of the vaccine in the same adult cohort.
The CDC director must agree to the recommendation before a vaccine is available.
The Merck and Pfizer vaccines are currently available on the U.S. market.
Merck offers three approved pneumococcal vaccines, including Vaxneuvance for individuals 6 weeks and older and Pneumovax 23 for adults 50 and older and 2 and older.
In June, U.S. health regulators approved Merck’s next-generation vaccine, Capvaxive, for adults 18 and older, which helps mount an immune response against all 21 serotypes of bacteria.
Pfizer’s Prevnar 20 is approved for adults 18 years and older and protects against 20 serotypes. It is also approved for infants from 6 weeks to 17 years of age.
Pneumococcal disease can cause infections in various parts of the body, including pulmonary pneumonia, and is spread by direct contact with respiratory secretions such as saliva and mucus.
Children under 5 years of age and adults over 65 years of age are at increased risk of contracting the disease.
(Reporting by Sriparna Roy and Sneha SK in Bengaluru; Editing by Tasim Zahid)
