HealthDay News — According to a recent issue of US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, new recommendations are presented for meningococcal conjugate vaccination among HIV-infected individuals.
Noting that a growing body of evidence suggests increased risk for meningococcal disease in HIV-infected individuals, Jessica MacNeil, MPH, from the CDC in Atlanta, and colleagues modified recommendations on vaccination with meningococcal conjugate vaccine.
The authors recommend that all HIV-infected individuals aged ≥2 months should receive meningococcal conjugate vaccine (serogroups A, C, W and Y); a multi-dose schedule should be used for children aged younger than 2 years. A 2-dose primary series of meningococcal conjugate vaccine is recommended for individuals aged ≥2 years.
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A booster dose should be given at the earliest opportunity (at least 8 weeks after the previous dose) for persons with HIV who have been previously vaccinated; boosters should continue at appropriate intervals. A booster dose should be administered 3 years later if the most recent dose was received before age 7 years. If the most recent dose was received at age ≥7 years, a booster should be given 5 years later and every 5 years thereafter.
“The recommendations for children aged 2 months through 2 years and persons aged ≥25 years are based on expert opinion; the vaccine was not studied in HIV-infected persons in these age groups,” the authors write.
Reference
“Recommendations for Use of Meningococcal Conjugate Vaccines in HIV-Infected Persons — Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, 2016.” Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. 2016. 65(43):1189–1194.
