Inhalative vaccination with pneumococcal polysaccharide in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

In order to determine the feasibility of inhalative vaccination with polysaccharide antigen in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), we used controlled inhalation of a defined dose of Pneumovax® in a randomized 3-arm study. The vaccine was either deposited in the alveoli (alveolar vaccination) or in the large airways (bronchial vaccination) and these were compared to standard intramuscular vaccination. Adverse effects were minor and never exceeded WHO grade 2. There was frequent cough, headache and shivering in the bronchial vaccination group, frequent fatigue only in the alveolar vaccination group and no frequent adverse effects in the intramuscular vaccination group. Specific serum IgG antibody was measured before and at 4 and 12 weeks after vaccination. At 12 weeks there was a greater than twofold rise in 7 out of 10 individuals in every vaccination group. Mean antibody levels of responders at 12 weeks were 278 mg/l for alveolar vaccination, 238 mg/l for bronchial vaccination and 737 mg/l for standard intramuscular vaccination. The data show that polysaccharide vaccine can be safely administered by controlled inhalation in COPD patients and that it can induce a rapid serum antibody response.