Surveillance of the impact of pneumococcal conjugate vaccines in developing countries

Infection due to Streptococcus pneumoniae is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in young children, especially in developing countries. With the support of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, the majority of these countries have introduced pneumococcal conjugate vaccines (PCV) into their national immunization programs and early data demonstrate a high degree of effectiveness, translating to enormous public health benefit through both direct and indirect (herd) effects. Future vaccination strategy may be focused on maintaining herd effects rather than individual protection. Evaluation of vaccine-type carriage, particularly in pneumonia cases, may be an easy, feasible way of measuring continued vaccine impact.