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Prevenar 13 is administered on the National Immunisation Schedule as a primary course at 6 weeks and 5 months of age, followed by a booster dose at 12 months of age.
Prevenar 13 is funded for children and adults with a medical condition that increases their risk of invasive pneumococcal disease AND is listed on the Pharmaceutical Schedule, identified as 'special groups on the National Immunisation Schedule. In infants with an eligible medical condition, Prevenar 13 is given at 6 weeks, 3 months and 5 months and 12 months of age.
Prevenar 13 is available as a purchased vaccine for people with a medical condition that is not listed on the Pharmaceutical Schedule.
The vaccine is designed to protect people from severe forms of the disease e.g. bacteraemia (blood infection) and meningitis. In addition there is good evidence that vaccinating young children reduces the amount of carriage (people who carry the bacteria in their nose and throat but do not get sick from it) in the population. This means that people not vaccinated may be protected from the groups of disease covered by the vaccine. This is called herd, or community, immunity.
Prevenar 13 is administered on the National Immunisation Schedule as a primary course at 6 weeks and 5 months of age, followed by a booster dose at 12 months of age.
Prevenar 13 is funded for children and adults with a medical condition that increases their risk of invasive pneumococcal disease AND is listed on the Pharmaceutical Schedule, identified as 'special groups on the National Immunisation Schedule. In children with an eligible medical condition, Prevenar 13 is given at 6 weeks, 3 months and 5 months and 12 months of age.
Prevenar 13 is available as a purchased vaccine for people with a medical condition that is not listed on the Pharmaceutical Schedule.
Prevenar 13 is recommended and funded as below.
Two doses of PCV13 are funded for high risk tamariki (over the age of 12 months and under 18 years, who have previously received two doses of the primary course of PCV10, or up to an additional four doses (as appropriate) for (re-)immunisation of individuals:
N.B. Pneumovax23 (pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine) is also funded for these groups from 2 years of age, and should also be administered at least 8 weeks after Prevenar13.
High risk children under 5 years who have not completed a course of PCV13 vaccine are eligible to receive age-appropriate catch up doses.
For those people meeting special groups eligibility, Prevenar 13 should be administered at least 8 weeks before Pneumovax 23. However, missed doses of Prevenar 13 can be given even if the person has previously received one or more doses of Pneumovax23. There are no safety concerns expected, but it is possible for prior doses of Pneumovax23 to reduce an individual’s immune response to Prevenar 13.
For adults aged 18 years or older who received Pneumovax23 before a dose of Prevenar 13 - Prevenar 13 should be given at least one year after Pneumovax23.
For children aged 2 years to under 18 years who received Pneumovax23 before a dose of Prevenar 13 - Prevenar 13 should be given at least eight weeks after Pneumovax23.
Upon storage, the vaccine may separate into a white deposit and clear liquid. The vaccine should be well shaken to obtain a consistent white suspension. Do not use if the content appears otherwise.
Store as per cold chain between 2°C to 8°C.
Prevenar 13 can be administered concurrently with other vaccines, including all the National Immunisation Schedule vaccines except other pneumococcal vaccines, e.g. Pneumovax23. Separate syringes and different injection sites should be used.
Systemic reactions (chills, rash and myalgia) may occur when Prevenar 13 and influenza vaccine are administered at the same time. If a child aged under 5 years needs both Prevenar 13 and influenza vaccines, separation of vaccines by two days can be offered. If the child has a history of febrile convulsions, separation of the vaccines is recommended.
The vaccine is administered intramuscularly, into the vastus lateralis or the deltoid muscle in older children and adults.
The benefit of vaccination in very premature infants and those with a previous history of respiratory immaturity is high. Vaccination should not be withheld or delayed in these babies, however, respiratory monitoring should be considered for 48–72 hours due to the potential risk of apnoea.
Prevenar 13 should not be given to:
Specialist advice should be sought for the following groups:
There is good evidence that pneumococcal conjugate vaccines given in infancy help to protect non-vaccinated individuals from invasive pneumococcal disease caused by serotypes in the vaccines through community (herd) immunity.
A study in Germany showed a marked decrease in the incidence of non-meningitis invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) caused by PCV13 serotypes following the introduction of Synflorix and Prevenar 13. This decrease was not only observed in infants younger than 2 years but also older children, indicating herd immunity. In this study, an overall decrease in meningitis was limited to vaccinated children aged 2–4 years.
Herd effects from Prevenar 13 result from the impact of this vaccine on pneumococcal nasopharyngeal carriage in vaccinated infants. In a French study, overall carriage was reported to be significantly lower among children who received at least one doses of Prevenar 13 compared with those who were exclusively vaccinated with Prevenar.
Data has shown a decline in otitis media (middle ear infection) following the routine introduction of pneumococcal conjugate vaccines to the schedule. However, otitis media also caused by other types of bacteria which are not protected against by this vaccine.
