Consensus

What Does the Indian Consensus Statement for Rheumatology Say About Pneumococcal Vaccination in Patients With Rheumatologic Diseases?

With the availability of PCV13, it is essential for the rheumatologists to know when and which of the 2 pneumococcal vaccines, PCV13 and PPSV23, should be administered to patients with AIRDs. The Indian consensus document for rheumatology serves as a practical guide for the clinicians, providing evidence-based recommendations on vaccination of adult patients with AIRD, aged ≥50 years. Vaccination against IPD is strongly recommended by the consensus guideline. The schedule for administering pneumococcal vaccines in patients with AIRDs is as follows¹:

• PCV13 should be administered first, followed by PPSV23 at >8-week interval

• If PPSV23 was administered first, then a single dose of PCV13 should be administered after an interval of >1 year

• If PPSV23 was administered recently, PCV13 should not be given till a minimum gap of 1 year elapses

However, in the Indian context, PCV13 use was approved for adults in 2012. Therefore, it can be presumed that most of the patients with AIRD have already received PPSV23. In such cases, PCV13 can be given to patients with AIRD, with a minimum gap of 1 year post-PPSV23 vaccination.

AIRD, autoimmune rheumatic disease; IPD, invasive pneumococcal disease; PCV13, 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine; PPSV23, 23-valent pneumococcal plain polysaccharide vaccine.

Reference: