Pneumococcal Vaccine

A vaccine (trade name Pneumovax) effective against the 23 most common strains of pneumococcus.

Prevnar Pneumococcal conjugate vaccine

PPSV24

PPSV23 protects against 23 types of bacteria that cause pneumococcal diseases such as pneumococcal pneumonia.

Polysaccharide vaccine

• PPSV23 is a type of Pneumococcal Polysaccharide Vaccine.
• Pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPSV23 or Pneumovax23®) includes purified preparations of pneumococcal capsular polysaccharide.
• PPSV23 contains polysaccharide antigen from 23 types of pneumococcal bacteria.
• It contains 25 µg of each antigen per dose and contains 0.25% phenol as a preservative.

Pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine

Vaccine recommendations

PPSV23 is recommended for:

• All adults 65 years or older,
• Anyone 2 years or older with certain medical conditions that can lead to an increased risk for pneumococcal disease.

Child immunizations schedule chart

Dosage schedule

• Most people need only one dose of PPSV23.

Second dose

• A second dose of PPSV23, and another type of pneumococcal vaccine called PCV13, are recommended for certain high-risk groups. 
• People 65 years or older should get a dose of PPSV23 even if they have already gotten one or more doses of the vaccine before they turned 65.

Other pneumococcal vaccines

• PCV13 protects against 13 types of bacteria that cause pneumococcal disease. Pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13 or Prevnar13®) includes purified capsular polysaccharide of 13 serotypes of Streptococcus pneumoniae.
• Infants and young children usually need 4 doses of pneumococcal conjugate vaccine, at 2, 4, 6, and 12–15 months of age. In some cases, a child might need fewer than 4 doses to complete PCV13 vaccination.
• A dose of PCV13 is also recommended for anyone 2 years or older with certain medical conditions if they did not already receive PCV13.

This vaccine is sometimes also given to adults 65 years.