New Vaccine Helps Prevent Ear Infections In Children, Study Finds
Posted April 2, 2007 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Researchers have found that a Wyeth vaccine to fight common bacterial diseases has produced dramatic and unexpected drops in repeat ear infections and the need for inserted ear tubes in children since its U.S. introduction seven years ago.
“This is exciting news for parents whose children suffer from frequent and painful ear infections,” said Katherine Poehling, a pediatrician at Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center and lead author of the study. The vaccine “is going beyond what it was supposed to do,” she said in an interview.
The vaccine, called PCV7, is marketed under the brand name Prevnar in the U.S. and Canada and as Prevenar in other parts of the world.
The vaccination, given to infants between two and four-months-old, was designed to fight a number of pneumococcal infections, including ear infections that most children have at least once by the time they reach two years of age.
But Poehling said the new research shows that the vaccine also was preventing repeat infections, which up to four times a year in nearly a third of all children, often requiring the insertion of ear tubes to equalize pressure.
The vaccine also has helped adults, she said, by preventing the general spread of disease.
The study examines data from more than 150,000 children in Tennessee and another 26,409 in upstate New York.
Since the introduction of Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine, it found, the proportion of children who developed frequent ear infections and the proportion who received ear tubes declined by 16 per cent in Tennessee and 25 per cent in New York by age two.
Poehling called the results “very exciting” but said public health officials need to keep watch of the situation to make sure pneumococcal strains not included in the vaccine do not become a problem.
When to give Prevnar
2 to 6 months
3 shots usually given
2 months apart
(with a minimum of
4 weeks apart)
1 dose between 12 and 15 months of age
7 to 11 months
2 shots usually given
2 months apart
(with a minimum of
4 weeks apart)
1 dose between 12 and 15 months of age
12 to 23 months
2 shots usually given
2 months apart
(with a minimum of
4 weeks apart)
No booster required
24 to 59 months of age with underlying illness
2 shots usually given
2 months apart
(with a minimum of
4 weeks apart)
No booster required
Here’s what you need to know about middle ear infections:
Signs and symptoms
Ear infections can be hard to detect, especially if your child is too young to say, “My ear hurts.” Knowing what to look for can help.
Children with ear infections may:
Tug or pull at their ears
Cry more than usual
Have trouble sleeping
Fail to respond to sounds
Be unusually irritable
Develop a fever
Develop fluid that drains from the ears
Have headaches
Prevention
You can reduce your child’s risk of ear infections with a few simple steps:
Keep your child away from sick children. If you can, limit the time your child spends in group child care. A child care setting with fewer children may help.
Protect your child from secondhand smoke. Make sure that no one smokes in your home. Away from home, stay in smoke-free environments.
Breast-feed your baby for at least six months. Breast milk contains antibodies that offer protection from ear infections.
If you bottle-feed, hold your baby in an upright position. Avoid propping a bottle in your baby’s mouth while he or she is lying down.
Ask your child’s doctor about the pneumococcal vaccine (Prevnar). Prevnar is intended to prevent serious, life-threatening infections, such as pneumonia and meningitis. Studies indicate that it slightly reduces the risk of ear infections as well.
