Health

Pneumonia vaccine and mortality risk

NEWS IN BRIEF — Posted April 3, 2006

Print  |   Email  |   Respond  |   Reprints  |   Like Facebook  |   Share Twitter  |   Tweet Linkedin

Adults hospitalized for pneumonia who have received the pneumococcal vaccine are at lower risk of dying from the disease than those who haven't been vaccinated, said a study published in the April 15 Clinical Infectious Diseases and available online.

Researchers analyzed data from nearly 63,000 patients hospitalized for pneumonia between 1999 and 2003. Vaccinated patients were 40% to 70% less likely to die during hospitalization than either unvaccinated patients or those whose status was unknown. Vaccinated patients also had a lower risk of developing respiratory failure, kidney failure, heart attack or other ailments.

Twelve percent of the patients were known to have received the vaccine before being hospitalized, 23% were unvaccinated and the status of the rest was unknown.

Questions have been raised about the effectiveness of the vaccine, said lead author David Fisman, MD, MPH, a visiting scholar at Princeton University in New Jersey. "However, the benefits of vaccination seem evident in the new study," he said. The pneumococcal vaccine impairs the development of a serious condition called bacteremia. "Even if you're really sick, prevention of the bacteria getting into the bloodstream ... might save your life."

Note: This item originally appeared at http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2006/04/03/hlbf0403.htm.

Back to top


ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISE HERE


Featured
Read story

Confronting bias against obese patients

Medical educators are starting to raise awareness about how weight-related stigma can impair patient-physician communication and the treatment of obesity. Read story


Read story

Goodbye

American Medical News is ceasing publication after 55 years of serving physicians by keeping them informed of their rapidly changing profession. Read story


Read story

Policing medical practice employees after work

Doctors can try to regulate staff actions outside the office, but they must watch what they try to stamp out and how they do it. Read story


Read story

Diabetes prevention: Set on a course for lifestyle change

The YMCA's evidence-based program is helping prediabetic patients eat right, get active and lose weight. Read story


Read story

Medicaid's muddled preventive care picture

The health system reform law promises no-cost coverage of a lengthy list of screenings and other prevention services, but some beneficiaries still might miss out. Read story


Read story

How to get tax breaks for your medical practice

Federal, state and local governments offer doctors incentives because practices are recognized as economic engines. But physicians must know how and where to find them. Read story


Read story

Advance pay ACOs: A down payment on Medicare's future

Accountable care organizations that pay doctors up-front bring practice improvements, but it's unclear yet if program actuaries will see a return on investment. Read story


Read story

Physician liability: Your team, your legal risk

When health care team members drop the ball, it's often doctors who end up in court. How can physicians improve such care and avoid risks? Read story

  • Stay informed
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • LinkedIn