As I was leaving the house this morning I heard on the TV news that there was a "vaccination for smoking." Like most reports in the media it was wrong. Here is the actual recommendation from the Centers for Disease Control as reported in the L.A. Times:
CDC panel recommends vaccination for smokers
It's
the first time that demographic -- about 20% of American adults -- has
been so targeted. The group is at high risk of infection from a
pneumonia-causing bacterium.
By Mary Engel
October 23, 2008
A federal health panel for the first time has singled out smokers for vaccination because of their high risk of infection from a pneumonia-causing bacterium.
The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention already recommends the pneumococcal vaccine for children, adults over 65 and those with chronic illnesses and weakened immune systems.
The panel's new recommendation, proposed Wednesday and expected to be formally adopted by the CDC, would expand the group to smokers ages 19 to 64.
About one-fifth of U.S. adults smoke cigarettes, according to CDC spokesman Curtis Allen. Studies consistently find that smokers account for approximately half of otherwise healthy adults with invasive pneumococcal disease, Allen said.
"The risk of getting pneumococcal pneumonia among smokers is substantially greater than among nonsmokers, so it makes sense to recommend that smokers get the vaccine," said Dr. Norman H. Edelman, chief medical officer for the American Lung Assn. "But that in no way protects you from all of the terrible things that smoking will do."
The CDC committee also recommended that smokers who receive the pneumococcal vaccine be advised to stop smoking. About 50% of regular smokers will die of a smoking-related disease, usually lung cancer, emphysema, chronic bronchitis or cardiovascular disease, Edelman said.
The vaccine protects against several strains of Streptococcus pneumoniae, a group of bacteria also known as pneumococci. They live intermittently in the noses and throats of people of all ages, usually without causing harm.
But in the wrong place, they can cause middle-ear and sinus infections as well as less common but more serious infections of the lungs, central nervous system and blood.
Smoking makes it easier for the bacteria to get to the wrong place by damaging protective mucous membranes and tiny, hair-like cilia in the back of the nose and throat, said Dr. Lisa Jackson, senior investigator for the Seattle-based Group Health Center for Health Studies. Smoking also damages the ability of white blood cells to fight off infections, she said.
October 23, 2008
A federal health panel for the first time has singled out smokers for vaccination because of their high risk of infection from a pneumonia-causing bacterium.
The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention already recommends the pneumococcal vaccine for children, adults over 65 and those with chronic illnesses and weakened immune systems.
The panel's new recommendation, proposed Wednesday and expected to be formally adopted by the CDC, would expand the group to smokers ages 19 to 64.
About one-fifth of U.S. adults smoke cigarettes, according to CDC spokesman Curtis Allen. Studies consistently find that smokers account for approximately half of otherwise healthy adults with invasive pneumococcal disease, Allen said.
"The risk of getting pneumococcal pneumonia among smokers is substantially greater than among nonsmokers, so it makes sense to recommend that smokers get the vaccine," said Dr. Norman H. Edelman, chief medical officer for the American Lung Assn. "But that in no way protects you from all of the terrible things that smoking will do."
The CDC committee also recommended that smokers who receive the pneumococcal vaccine be advised to stop smoking. About 50% of regular smokers will die of a smoking-related disease, usually lung cancer, emphysema, chronic bronchitis or cardiovascular disease, Edelman said.
The vaccine protects against several strains of Streptococcus pneumoniae, a group of bacteria also known as pneumococci. They live intermittently in the noses and throats of people of all ages, usually without causing harm.
But in the wrong place, they can cause middle-ear and sinus infections as well as less common but more serious infections of the lungs, central nervous system and blood.
Smoking makes it easier for the bacteria to get to the wrong place by damaging protective mucous membranes and tiny, hair-like cilia in the back of the nose and throat, said Dr. Lisa Jackson, senior investigator for the Seattle-based Group Health Center for Health Studies. Smoking also damages the ability of white blood cells to fight off infections, she said.
Not the same as reported but still important to be vaccinated for Strep. pneumoniae.
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