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Bloom DE, Bonanni P, Martinón-Torres F, Richmond PC, Safadi MAP, Salisbury DM, Charos A, Schley K, Findlow J, Balmer P. Meningococcal Disease in the Post-COVID-19 Era: A Time to Prepare. Infect Dis Ther 2023; 12:2649-2663. [PMID: 38048020 PMCID: PMC10746601 DOI: 10.1007/s40121-023-00888-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2023] [Accepted: 10/23/2023] [Indexed: 12/05/2023] Open
Abstract
The global invasive meningococcal disease (IMD) landscape changed considerably during the COVID-19 pandemic, as evidenced by decreased incidence rates due to COVID-19 mitigation measures, such as limited social contact, physical distancing, mask wearing, and hand washing. Vaccination rates were also lower during the pandemic relative to pre-pandemic levels. Although policymakers may have shifted their focus away from IMD vaccination programs to COVID-19 vaccination programs, strong arguments support implementation and prioritization of IMD vaccination programs; IMD cases have increased in some countries and IMD rates may even have exceeded pre-pandemic levels. Additional concerns include increased susceptibility due to vaccination coverage gaps, increased incidence of other respiratory pathogens, immunity debt from lockdown restrictions, and increased IMD epidemiologic variability. The full range of benefits of widely available and effective meningococcal vaccines needs to be considered, especially in health technology assessments, where the broad benefits of these vaccines are neither accurately quantified nor captured in implementation policy decisions. Importantly, implementation of meningococcal vaccination programs in the current IMD climate also appeals to broader healthcare principles, including preparedness rather than reactive approaches, generally accepted benefit-risk approaches to vaccination, historical precedent, and the World Health Organization's goal of defeating meningitis by 2030. Countries should therefore act swiftly to bolster existing meningococcal vaccination strategies to provide broad coverage across age groups and serogroups given the recent increases in IMD incidence.
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Affiliation(s)
- David E Bloom
- Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Paolo Bonanni
- Department of Health Sciences, University of Florence, Florence, Italy
| | - Federico Martinón-Torres
- Pediatrics Department, Translational Pediatrics and Infectious Diseases, Hospital Clínico Universitario de Santiago de Compostela, Santiago, de Compostela, Spain
- Genetics, Vaccines and Infections Research Group (GENVIP), Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria de Santiago, University of Santiago de Compostela, Santiago de Compostela, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Enfermedades Respiratorias (CIBERES), Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Madrid, Spain
| | - Peter C Richmond
- Division of Paediatrics, School of Medicine, University of Western Australia, Perth, WA, Australia
- Wesfarmers Centre of Vaccines and Infectious Diseases, Telethon Kids Institute and Perth Children's Hospital, Perth, WA, Australia
| | - Marco A P Safadi
- Department of Pediatrics, Santa Casa de São Paulo School of Medical Sciences, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - David M Salisbury
- Programme for Global Health, Royal Institute of International Affairs, Chatham House, London, UK
| | | | | | - Jamie Findlow
- Vaccines, Antivirals and Evidence Generation, Pfizer Ltd, Tadworth, UK
| | - Paul Balmer
- Vaccines, Antivirals and Evidence Generation, Pfizer Inc, Collegeville, PA, USA
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Schley K, Kowalik JC, Sullivan SM, Vyse A, Czudek C, Tichy E, Findlow J. Assessing the Role of Infant and Toddler MenACWY Immunisation in the UK: Does the Adolescent MenACWY Programme Provide Sufficient Protection? Vaccines (Basel) 2023; 11:vaccines11050940. [PMID: 37243043 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines11050940] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2023] [Revised: 04/18/2023] [Accepted: 04/20/2023] [Indexed: 05/28/2023] Open
Abstract
A combined Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib)/meningococcal serogroup C (MenC) vaccine will soon be unavailable in the UK immunisation schedule due to discontinuation by the manufacturer. An interim statement by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) advises stopping MenC immunisation at 12 months of age when this occurs. We undertook an analysis of the public health impact of various potential meningococcal vaccination strategies in the UK in the absence of the Hib/MenC vaccine. A static population-cohort model was developed evaluating the burden of IMD (using 2005-2015 epidemiological data) and related health outcomes (e.g., cases, cases with long-term sequelae, deaths), which allows for the comparison of any two meningococcal immunisation strategies. We compared potential strategies that included different combinations of infant and/or toddler MenACWY immunisations with the anticipated future situation in which a 12-month MenC vaccine is not used, but the MenACWY vaccine is routinely given in adolescents. The most effective strategy is combining MenACWY immunisation at 2, 4, and 12 months of age with the incumbent adolescent MenACWY immunisation programme, resulting in the prevention of an additional 269 IMD cases and 13 fatalities over the modelling period; of these cases, 87 would be associated with long-term sequelae. Among the different vaccination strategies, it was observed that those with multiple doses and earlier doses provided the greatest protection. Our study provides evidence suggesting that the removal of the MenC toddler immunisation from the UK schedule would potentially increase the risk of unnecessary IMD cases and have a detrimental public health impact if not replaced by an alternate infant and/or toddler programme. This analysis supports that infant and toddler MenACWY immunisation can provide maximal protection while complementing both infant/toddler MenB and adolescent MenACWY immunisation programmes in the UK.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Jack C Kowalik
- Pfizer Ltd., Walton Oaks, Dorking Rd., Tadworth KT20 7NS, UK
| | | | - Andrew Vyse
- Pfizer Ltd., Walton Oaks, Dorking Rd., Tadworth KT20 7NS, UK
| | - Carole Czudek
- Pfizer Ltd., Walton Oaks, Dorking Rd., Tadworth KT20 7NS, UK
| | - Eszter Tichy
- Evidera/PPD, Bocskai ut 134-144, Dorottya Udvar, Building E, Floor 2, H-1113 Budapest, Hungary
| | - Jamie Findlow
- Pfizer Ltd., Walton Oaks, Dorking Rd., Tadworth KT20 7NS, UK
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