Background Although asymptomatic carriage of Streptococcus pneumoniae (Spn) is common, acquisition of the bacteria is the first step in disease pathogenesis. We examined the effect of introduction of the 7-valent pneumococcal vaccine on Spn carriage patterns in a cohort of Peruvian children. Methods We used data from a prospective cohort study that collected monthly nasopharyngeal samples fro...

We assessed the impact of the heptavalent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV7) on the nasopharyngeal carriage of Streptococcus pneumoniae in healthy children aged 2 to 24 months, four years after its implementation in New Caledonia. The data were compared with those obtained, before the introduction of the vaccine, in the same target population From February to October 2008, 592 children were ...

BACKGROUND We investigated the effect of the 7-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (PCV7) programme in England on serotype-specific carriage and invasive disease to help understand its role in serotype replacement and predict the impact of higher valency vaccines. METHODS AND FINDINGS Nasopharyngeal swabs were taken from children <5 y old and family members (n=400) 2 y after introduction of...

Understanding predisposing factors for meningococcal carriage may identify targets for public health interventions. Before mass vaccination with meningococcal group C conjugate vaccine began in autumn 1999, we took pharyngeal swabs from approximately 14,000 UK teenagers and collected information on potential risk factors. Neisseria meningitidis was cultured from 2,319 (16.7%) of 13,919 swabs. I...

To determine whether an association exists between group B streptococcus carriage and HIV infection, we recruited 1,857 pregnant women (21.7% HIV positive) from Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital, Blantyre, Malawi. Overall, group B streptococcus carriage was 21.2% and did not differ by HIV status. However, carriage was increased among HIV-positive women with higher CD4 counts.

Serial nasal swabs were collected at the ages of 1.5, 6, and 14 months from 443 infants in the Generation R Study. The objective was to study the dynamics and determinants of Staphylococcus aureus nasal carriage in the first year of life. The prevalence of S. aureus carriage decreased in the first year of life, from 52.1% at the age of 1.5 months to 12.9% at 14 months. Persistent carriage, defi...

The prevalence of group B streptococcal carriage was evaluated in nonpregnant women and in mothers and their offsprings. The overall carriage rate of group B streptococci at one site was 18.2%. Streptococci were recovered from one or more of the sites sampled in 25.6% of mothers and 15.4% of newborn infants. The maternal genital carriage rate was 18.6%, and acquisition of the organism from the ...