Do pneumococcal conjugate vaccines provide any cross-protection against serotype 19A?

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Introduction of the 7-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (7vCRM) in several countries has led to a rapid, significant drop in vaccine-type invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) in immunized children. In the United States and some other countries with high antibiotic use, a subsequent rise in serotype 19A IPD has been taken to indicate that the 19F conjugate in the vaccine provides no cross-protection against the immunologically related 19A.</p> <p>Discussion</p> <p>We systematically assessed the clinical efficacy and effectiveness of 19F-containing vaccines against 19A disease or nasopharyngeal carriage by searching English-language articles in the electronic databases PubMed, Current contents, Scopus, and Embase from 1985 to 2008. The vaccine efficacy and effectiveness point estimates were consistently positive for modest protection against 19A IPD and acute otitis media (AOM). However, statistical significance was not reached in any individual study. No consistent impact of 7vCRM on 19A nasopharyngeal colonization could be detected. These findings are discussed in context of immunogenicity analyses indicating that 7vCRM induces functionally active anti-19A antibodies after the booster dose, and that other 19F-containing vaccine formulations may elicit higher levels of such antibodies after both primary and booster doses.</p> <p>Summary</p> <p>Taken together, these results suggest that 19F-conjugates can provide some protection against 19A disease. The magnitude of this protection in a given setting will likely depend on several factors. These include the anti-19A immunogenicity of the specific vaccine formulation, the number of doses of that formulation needed to elicit the response, and the burden of 19A disease that occurs after those doses. It is possible that a modest protective effect may be obscured by the presence of countervailing selection pressures (such as high antibiotic use) that favor an increase in colonization with antibiotic-non-susceptible strains of 19A.</p

Early acquisition and high nasopharyngeal co-colonisation by Streptococcus pneumoniae and three respiratory pathogens amongst Gambian new-borns and infants

BACKGROUND: Although Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib), Staphylococcus aureus and Moraxella catarrhalis are important causes of invasive and mucosal bacterial disease among children, co-carriage with Streptococcus pneumoniae during infancy has not been determined in West Africa. METHODS: Species specific PCR was applied to detect each microbe using purified genomic DNA from 498 nasopharyngeal (NP) swabs collected from 30 Gambian neonates every two weeks from 0 to 6 months and bi-monthly up to 12 months. RESULTS: All infants carried S. pneumoniae, H. influenzae and M. catarrhalis at several time points during infancy. S.pneumoniae co-colonized the infant nasopharynx with at least one other pathogen nine out of ten times. There was early colonization of the newborns and neonates, the average times to first detection were 5, 7, 3 and 14 weeks for S. pneumoniae, H. influenzae, M. catarrhalis and S. aureus respectively. The prevalence of S. pneumoniae, H. influenzae and M. catarrhalis increased among the neonates and exceeded 80% by 13, 15 and 23 weeks respectively. In contrast, the prevalence of S. aureus decreased from 50% among the newborns to 20% amongst nine-week old neonates. S. pneumoniae appeared to have a strong positive association with H. influenzae (OR 5.03; 95% CI 3.02, 8.39; p<0.01) and M. catarrhalis (OR 2.20; 95% CI 1.29; p<0.01) but it was negatively associated with S. aureus (OR 0.53; 95% CI 0.30, 0.94; p=0.03). CONCLUSION: This study shows early acquisition and high co-carriage of three important respiratory pathogens with S. pneumoniae in the nasopharyngeal mucosa among Gambian neonates and infants. This has important potential implications for the aetiology of respiratory polymicrobial infections, biofilm formation and vaccine strategies

Mothering Practices of Filipino Generation Z Mothers: Correlations with their Personal Characteristics and their State of Well-being

This study aimed to describe authoritative Filipino Generation Z mothers\u27 mothering practices, including their concept of authority, parent-child communication, and reward-punishment practices. Eighty (80) Gen Z mothers, ages 18 to 24, with at least one child, completed a self-administered questionnaire using purposive and snowball sampling. The findings indicated that mothers have highly authoritative parenting styles and very healthy overall well-being. The mother\u27s completed education level showed weak inverse correlations with parent-child communication (r = -0.432, p = 0.000), and concept of authority (r = -0.283, p = 0.011). The mother\u27s monthly income had a weak inverse relationship with her concept of authority (r = -0.269, p = 0.016). Furthermore, the number of household members had weak inverse correlation with parent-child communication (r = -0.227, p = 0.042) and positive correlations with reward and punishment practices (r = 0.437, p = 0.000). Results imply that mothers with a lower level of education value more authority and communication with their children. The findings show weak negative correlations between the mother\u27s concept of authority and social well-being (r = -0.289, p = 0.009), implying that less concern for authority meant better social health. Furthermore, open lines of communication between mother and child have positive effects on their psychological health (r = 0.380, p = 0.001). Rewarding has shown to improve psychological health (r = 0.257, p = 0.021) and overall well-being (r = 0.232, p = 0.038). The results could promote strategies that make Gen Z mothers use effective mothering practices in child-rearing

Lived experiences of tuberculosis patients undergoing short course chemotherapy

There were eleven (11) participants who took part in the study; the youngest is 21 years old whereas the oldest is 78 years old and they were chosen through purposive sampling technique. Phenomenology was used in this study to vividly describe the lived experiences of the participants. Being TB patients undergoing short-course chemotherapy was the phenomenon and the patients themselves were the ones who described their experiences. The analysis of data was based on Colaizzi\u27s phenomenological approach. The researchers used in-depth interviews for each participant of the study using a tape recorder. Observation of nonverbal cues was also done while the interviews were being conducted. After the researchers anayzed the data gathered, five (5) themes emerged. The first theme, Exposition, reveals the possible factors affecting the immune system of the participants that led to the development of the TB disease. The second theme, Rising Action, presents the different situations that arose before the participants were diagnosed as TB patients and before undergoing short-source chemotherapy as their treatment strategy. The third theme, Climax, focuses on the difficulties encountered by the participants. The fourth theme, Falling Action, reveals the changes and the progress happening to the participants as a result of the treatment. Lastly, the Denouement presents the coping of the participants during their treatment

Mothering Practices of Filipino Generation Z: Correlations with Personal Characteristics and State of Well-being

This study aimed to describe authoritative Filipino Generation Z mothers' mothering practices, including their concept of authority, parent-child communication, and reward-punishment practices. Eighty (80) Gen Z mothers, ages 18 to 24, with at least one child, completed a self-administered questionnaire using purposive and snowball sampling. The findings indicated that mothers have highly authoritative parenting styles and have very healthy overall well-being. The mother's completed education level showed weak inverse correlations with parent-child communication (r = -0.432, p = 0.000) and concept of authority (r = -0.283, p = 0.011). The mother's monthly income had a weak inverse relationship with her concept of authority (r = -0.269, p = 0.016). Furthermore, the number of household members had weak inverse correlation with parent-child communication (r = -0.227, p = 0.042) and positive correlations with reward and punishment practices (r = 0.437, p = 0.000). Results imply that mothers with a lower level of education value more authority and communication with their children. The findings show weak negative correlations between the mother's concept of authority and social well-being (r = -0.289, p = 0.009), implying that less concern for authority meant better social health. Furthermore, open lines of communication between mother and child have positive effects on their psychological health (r = 0.380, p = 0.001). Rewarding has shown to improve their psychological health (r = 0.257, p = 0.021) and overall well-being (r = 0.232, p = 0.038). The results could promote strategies that make Gen Z mothers use effective mothering practices in child-rearing