20-valent Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine Recommended for Infants and Children

Pfizer Inc. recently announced that the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) unanimously voted to recommend PREVNAR 20® (20-valent Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine) for routine use to help protect infants and children from invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD) caused by the 20 Streptococcus pneumoniae serotypes covered by the vaccine and for the prevention of otitis media in infants six weeks through five years of age caused by the original seven serotypes contained in PREVNAR®.

These provisional recommendations will be reviewed and finalized by the director of the CDC and the Department of Health and Human Services.

“We are thrilled with today’s ACIP decision as it recognizes the increased level of protection that PREVNAR 20 will provide to millions of infants and children against pneumococcal disease,” said  Luis Jodar, Ph.D., Chief Medical Affairs Officer, Vaccines/Antivirals and Evidence Generation, Pfizer, in a press release on June 22, 2023.

Previously, the European Medicines Agency approved the brand name Apexxnar in February 2022.