Pneumococcal Disease Basics

The best way to prevent pneumococcal disease is vaccination. Vaccination is recommended for children under 5 years of age, adults 50 years and older, and people at increased risk for pneumococcal disease.

On this page:
Vaccines
Disease information
Symptoms
Treatment and antibiotics
More information

Vaccines

Two types of vaccines are available to prevent pneumococcal disease. Talk to your health care provider about which vaccine is right for you or your child.

• Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine (PCV15, PCV20, or PCV21)
• Pneumococcal Polysaccharide Vaccine (PPSV23)

Disease information

Pneumococcal disease is an infection caused by a type of bacteria called Streptococcus pneumoniae. It can cause many types of infections including ear infections, pneumonia, bloodstream infections, and meningitis.

In children, pneumococcal disease is the most common cause of serious bacterial infections, including infection of the lining of the brain and spinal cord (meningitis), infection of the blood (bacteremia), and infection of the lungs (pneumonia). It is also one of the most common bacterial causes of acute middle ear infections in children, which are the most frequent reason for pediatric office visits in the United States. Among children, those under 2 years of age have the highest rates of pneumococcal disease.

Pneumococcal pneumonia is a serious lung infection and the most common type of bacterial pneumonia. In some cases, the bacteria can spread from the lungs to the bloodstream causing conditions like joint infections (septic arthritis), meningitis, or infections of the heart lining (endocarditis). When this happens, the risk of severe illness or death increases, with about 1 in 10 cases being fatal. This infection is particularly dangerous for adults over 50 and people of any age with certain health conditions, such as asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), heart disease, diabetes, kidney problems, cancer, or weakened immune systems. People who smoke or have HIV are also at higher risk. Protecting yourself with vaccination and healthy habits can help lower the risk of pneumococcal pneumonia. 

Pneumococcal meningitis is the most common type of bacterial meningitis among children and adults in the United States. This serious infection affects the brain and spinal cord and is fatal for about 14% of adults who get it. Survivors may experience lasting effects, including brain and nervous system damage, learning deficits, and loss of hearing.

Severe pneumococcal infections are more common in:

• Adults over 65 years of age and children less than 2 years.
• Persons with underlying medical conditions such as sickle cell disease, HIV infection, and those with no or poorly functioning spleens.
• Black persons, Alaskan Natives and American Indians.

Symptoms

There are many types of pneumococcal disease. Visit CDC: Pneumococcal Disease Symptoms and Complications for more information on the symptoms for each type of pneumococcal disease.

Treatment and antibiotics

Until recently, pneumococcal infections could be treated effectively with antibiotics, however, many pneumococcal bacteria are becoming resistant to commonly used antibiotics making treatment more difficult. For this reason, it is desirable to prevent pneumococcal infections through vaccination, rather than depend on antibiotic treatment after infection occurs.

More information

• Immunization: Me and My Family
  Vaccination schedules for children and adults.
• CDC: Pneumococcal Disease
  Learn about pneumococcal disease types, symptoms, risk factors, and prevention.
• Immunize.org: Pneumococcal Disease
  Overview, vaccine schedule and resources for pneumococcal disease.