Pneumococcal Conjugated Vaccine Reduces the High Mortality for Community-Acquired Pneumonia in the Elderly: an Italian Regional Experience

BACKGROUND Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) is an important cause of illness and death worldwide, particularly among the elderly. Previous studies on the factors associated with mortality in patients hospitalized for CAP revealed a direct association between the type of microorganism involved, the characteristics of the patient and mortality. Vaccination status against pneumococcal disease was not considered. We conducted a retrospective analysis on the mortality rates after a first hospitalization for CAP in north-east Italy with a view to examining especially the role of anti-pneumococcal vaccination as a factor associated with pneumonia-related mortality at one year. METHOD Between 2012-2013, patients aged 65+ hospitalized with a primary diagnosis of CAP, identified based on International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision, Clinical Modification codes 481-486, were enrolled in the study only once. Patients were divided into three groups by pneumococcal vaccination status: 1) 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV13) prior to their hospitalization; 2) 23-valent pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPV23) within 5 years before hospitalization and 3) unvaccinated or PPV23 more than 5 years prior to admission. Gender, age, length of hospital stay and influenza vaccination were considered. Comorbidities were ascertained by means of a properly coded diagnosis. Every patient was followed up for 1 year and the outcome investigated was mortality for any cause and for pneumonia. RESULTS A total of 4,030 patient were included in the study; mean age at the time of admission to hospital was 84.3±7.7; 50.9% were female. 74.2% of subjects had at least one comorbidity; 73.7% has been vaccinated against influenza. Regard to pneumococcal vaccine, 80.4% of patients were not vaccinated, 14.5% vaccinated with PPV23 and 5.1% with PCV13. The 1-year survival rates after hospitalization for pneumonia were 83.6%, 85.9% and 89.3% in the unvaccinated, PPV23 and PCV13 groups, respectively. Regression analysis indicated that the risk of death due to pneumonia increased significantly with age (adjusted OR: 1.073; 1.061-1.085), shorter hospital stay (adjusted OR: 0.981; 0.971-0.990), and male gender (adjusted OR: 1.372; 1.165-1.616). The model also confirmed the pneumococcal 13-valent conjugated vaccine as an independent protective factor for mortality-related pneumonia (adjusted OR: 0.599; 0.390-0.921). CONCLUSION The main finding of our observational cohort study is a high mortality rate among elderly patients admitted to hospital for pneumonia. The present study suggests a protective role for PCV13 vaccination.