The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) has voted to recommend Pfizer’s Penbraya (meningococcal group A, B, C, W and Y vaccine) for the prevention of the five most common meningococcal serogroups.
These serogroups cause the majority of invasive meningococcal disease (IMD) in adolescents and young adults from 16 through to 23 years of age.
The ACIP voted that the MenABCWY vaccine may be used when both MenACWY and MenB are indicated at the same visit.
These provisional recommendations will be reviewed and finalised by the director of the CDC and the Department of Health and Human Services.
“Penbraya, the first FDA approved five-in-one meningococcal vaccine, provides adolescents and young adults in the US with the most comprehensive protection available against the leading causes of meningococcal disease,” said Luis Jodar, PhD, Chief Medical Affairs Officer, Vaccines/Antivirals and Evidence Generation, Pfizer. “Penbraya helps simplify a complex meningococcal disease vaccination schedule and has the potential to increase vaccine coverage by providing the broadest protection in the fewest number of shots to help prevent this deadly disease.”
On 20 October 2023, the FDA approved Penbraya as a two-dose series given six months apart for active immunisation to prevent invasive disease caused by Neisseria meningitidis serogroups A, B, C, W, and Y for adolescents and young adults aged 10 through 25 years.
The new vaccine reduces the total number of shots needed for individuals to be fully vaccinated against meningococcal serogroups A, B, C, W, and Y. According to the CDC, combining vaccines into fewer shots may mean that more adolescents and young adults get their recommended vaccines on time, resulting in fewer delays in protection against serious diseases.
