For the first time, an influential government panel is recommending a vaccination specifically for smokers.
The panel decided Wednesday that adult smokers under 65 should get pneumococcal vaccine. The shot — already recommended for anyone 65 or older — protects against bacteria that cause pneumonia, meningitis and other illnesses.
Federal officials usually adopt recommendations made by the panel, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices. The vote means more than 31 million adult smokers probably will soon be called on to get the shot.
Studies have shown that smokers are about four times as likely as nonsmokers to suffer pneumococcal disease. Also, the more cigarettes someone smokes each day, the higher the chances they’ll develop the illnesses.
Why smokers are more susceptible is not known for sure, but some scientists think it has to do with smoking-caused damage that allows the bacteria to more easily attach to the lungs and windpipe, said Dr. Pekka Nuorti, a medical epidemiologist with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Pneumococcal infections are considered the top killers among vaccine-preventable diseases. They’re a common complication of influenza, especially in the elderly, and are considered responsible for many of the 36,000 annual deaths attributed to flu.
The committee voted 11-3 to pass the recommendation, with one member abstaining. The panel also added a call for smoking-cessation counseling.
Some members said it might be more cost effective to recommend the vaccine for smokers who are at least age 40, because pneumococcal disease is relatively uncommon in younger smokers.
The shot is less than perfect. First licensed in 1983, it is designed to protect against 23 strains of pneumococcal bacteria.
But it hasn’t proved very effective against pneumonia and hasn’t been very effective in warding off other pneumococcal illnesses in people with weakened immune systems and in people age 80 or older.
It’s to be given to smokers as a one-time dose with no booster, but its protection drops off after five to 10 years.
