Pneumococcal disease

General Information

Diseases caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae (S. pneumoniae) are a major public health problem worldwide. More than 100 distinct pneumococcal serotypes have been identified throughout the world.

S. pneumoniae is the leading cause of community-acquired pneumonia.

Pneumococcal resistance to antimicrobials is a serious and rapidly increasing problem worldwide. There are two principal types of pneumococcal vaccines currently in use: pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPV) and pneumococcal conjugate vaccines (PCV).

Transmission

Pneumococci are transmitted by direct contact with respiratory secretions from patients and healthy carriers.

Symptoms

Serious pneumococcal infections include pneumonia, meningitis and febrile bacteraemia; otitis media, sinusitis and bronchitis are more common but less serious manifestations. Pneumococcal pneumonia is frequently preceded by a viral respiratory tract infection and typically presents abruptly with chills and high fever often followed by productive cough and pleuritic pain.

Epidemiology

It is estimated that about one million children die of pneumococcal disease every year.

The incidence of community-acquired pneumonia caused by S. pneumoniae is estimated at 1 in 1,000 adults per year. 

Vaccines Pipeline

5
Vaccines in
the pipeline

TECHNOLOGY PLATFORMS

Antigen-presenting cells (2)
Glycoconjugate vaccine (3)

DEVELOPMENT PHASES

Phase II (2)
Phase III (3)

TRIAL POPULATION

Paediatric (2)
Adults (2)
Paediatric + Adults + Older Adults (1)

Source:
WHO. Pneumococcal disease. [cited 2023 August]. Available from: https://www.who.int/teams/health-product-policy-and-standards/standards-and-specifications/vaccine-standardization/pneumococcal-disease.
ECDC. Factsheet about pneumococcal disease. [cited 2023 August]. Available from: https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/pneumococcal-disease/facts
Ganaie, F. A., et al. (2023). Discovery and Characterization of Pneumococcal Serogroup 36 Capsule Subtypes, Serotypes 36A and 36B. Journal of Clinical Microbiology, 61(4), e0002423. https://dx.doi.org/10.1128/jcm.00024-23