This article is more than 5 years old. Information may no longer be current.
Pneumonia vaccine remains effective for 10 years in most patients with inflammatory diseases
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts
The anti-pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine appears to be preserved for at least 10 years among patients with rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, ankylosing spondylitis and inflammatory bowel disease-associated spondyloarthritis, although efficacy may be diminished by methotrexate use, according to researchers from the Department of Rheumatology in the Tel Aviv Medical Center, Sackler School of Medicine at Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.
The study, which was conducted between July and November 2012, included 130 patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases. There were 67 patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), 29 patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA), 28 patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS), three patients with inflammatory bowel-related spondyloarthritis and one patient each with juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, Behçet’s disease and Takayasu arteritis. The mean patient age was 54.6 years. Overall, 61.5% of patients were women. Patients were treated with either a tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) or interleukin-6 (IL-6) inhibitor, or methotrexate.
Vaccination with the anti-pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPSV23) had occurred in 67.7% of the total patient group and in 97% of patients older than age 65 years. Investigators found higher levels of antibodies in patients who received the PPSV23 vaccine compared with unvaccinated patients (214 mg/L vs. 96 mg/L, respectively). Non-protective levels of antibodies were observed in 29.1% of patients who were not vaccinated compared with 10.2% of patients who received the PPSV23 vaccination.
When analyzed by time since the receipt of vaccination grouped by 5-year periods, a nonsignificant trend toward lower antibody levels was observed among patients who had been vaccinated more than 5 years prior to study, but no significant reduction of antibodies was observed in patients who received the vaccination more than 10 years prior to study.
Patient age, prednisone use and the use of TNF-alpha and IL-6 inhibitors were not associated with antibody levels, while methotrexate use was associated with significantly lower levels of antibodies. – by Shirley Pulawski
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.
Click Here to Manage Email Alerts