monthly update: October 24'

Meningococcal Vaccines

• ACIP recommends MenB-4C (Bexsero®) be administered as a 2-dose series at 0 and 6 months when given to healthy adolescents and young adults aged 16–23 years based on shared clinical decision-making for the prevention of serogroup B meningococcal disease. ACIP recommends MenB-4C (Bexsero®) be administered as a 3-dose series at 0, 1–2, and 6 months when given to persons aged ≥10 years at increased risk for serogroup B meningococcal disease (i.e., persons with anatomic or functional asplenia, complement component deficiencies, or complement inhibitor use; microbiologists routinely exposed to N. meningitidis isolates; and persons at increased risk during an outbreak). These recommendations were adopted by the CDC Director on October 24, 2024 and are now official.

PCV:

• ACIP recommends a pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV) for all PCV-naïve adults aged ≥50 years. This recommendation was adopted by the CDC Director on October 23, 2024 and is now official.
• NIAC (NITAG of Ireland) updated their recommendations for pneumococcal conjugate vaccination in childhood, available here.

COVID-19: 

• ACIP recommends a second dose of 2024-2025 COVID-19 for adults ages 65 years and older. ACIP recommends a second dose of 2024-2025 COVID-19 vaccine for people ages 6 months-64 years who are moderately or severely immunocompromised. ACIP recommends additional doses (i.e., 3 or more doses) of 2024-2025 COVID-19 vaccine for people ages 6 months and older who are moderately or severely immunocompromised under shared clinical decision making.

Influenza:

• STIKO (German NITAG) publishes the Resolution and scientific justification for adapting the STIKO recommendation of a standard vaccination for persons ≥ 60 years of age to protect against diseases caused by seasonal influenza viruses, available in German here.

RSV:

• The French NITAG published its vaccination strategy against RSV infections in adults aged 60 and over: role of the mRESVIA vaccine (Moderna), available in French here.

SAGE:

• the WHO mpox position paper unintentionally omitted a recommendation regarding lactating women, which was included in the interim guidance. This has now been corrected in the Weekly Epidemiological Record (WER) and on the WHO website. You can view the updated version here:  Smallpox and mpox orthopoxviruses vaccine position paper

WHO:

• WHO issued a report on Estimating the impact of vaccines in reducing antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and antibiotic use, available here.

Dates for your diary:

• The next GNN webinar is on Polio on December 11th – invitations to be sent shortly.
• The next face-to-face GNN meeting will be in 28-30 April 2025.