Pneumococcal disease
Cause
The bacterium Streptococcus pneumoniae.
Transmission
Infection is acquired by direct person-to-person contact via respiratory droplets or oral contact. There are many healthy, asymptomatic carriers of the bacteria, but there is no animal reservoir or insect vector.
Nature of the disease
Pneumonia with empyema and/or bacteraemia, febrile bacteraemia and meningitis are the commonest manifestations of invasive pneumococcal infection. Pneumococci are a frequent cause of non-bacteraemic pneumonia. In developing countries, non-bacteraemic pneumonia causes the majority of pneumococcal deaths in children. Middle-ear infections, sinusitis and bronchitis are non-invasive and less severe manifestations of pneumococcal infection but are considerably more common. Several chronic conditions predispose to serious pneumococcal disease. Increasing pneumococcal resistance to antibiotics underlines the importance of vaccination.
Disease burden
Infection with pneumococcus is a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. In 2005, WHO estimated that 1.6 million deaths were caused by this agent annually; this estimate included the deaths of 0.7–1 million children aged under 5 years. Most of these deaths occurred in poor countries and included a disproportionate number of children under the age of 2 years. In Europe and the USA, S. pneumoniae is the most common cause of community-acquired bacterial pneumonia in adults. In these regions, the annual incidence of invasive pneumococcal disease ranges from 10 to 100 cases per 100 000 population.
Risk for travellers
While travel itself does not normally increase the risk of acquiring pneumococcal disease, access to optimal health care may be limited during travel, increasing the risk of a poor outcome should disease occur. Certain conditions predispose to complications of pneumococcal infections, including sickle-cell disease, other haemoglobinopathies, chronic renal failure, chronic liver disease, immunosuppression after organ transplantation and other etiological factors, asplenia and dysfunctional spleen, leaks of cerebrospinal fluid, diabetes mellitus and HIV infection. Elderly individuals, especially those over 65 years of age, are also at increased risk for pneumococcal disease. Pneumococcal vaccine may be considered for travellers who belong to these high-risk groups.