New study to support pneumonia vaccines in Thailand

Researchers from the University of Southampton are to form a new partnership with scientists in Thailand to assess strains of Streptococcus pneumoniae, the commonest cause of pneumonia in young children.

Pneumonia is a leading cause of mortality among all age groups, especially among children. It accounts for 16% of all deaths of children under five years old worldwide and killed more than 920,000 children in 2015.

A vaccine is commonly used in western countries, but upper middle-income countries such as Thailand have a lack of evidence-based public health policy which limits vaccine introduction.

The Southampton study will provide insight into the different strains of the disease before the introduction of a vaccine.

Led by Stuart Clarke, Professor of Microbiology and Public Health and Honorary Consultant in Public Health in the Faculty of Medicine, the study will also involve researchers at Mahidol University and Siam University in Bangkok.

Samples will be collected from across the country and analysed for variations.

The study will also be an opportunity to help educate early career researchers in Thailand, which will be co-led by Professor Ruihua Hou, who leads the development of the Faculty internationalisation strategy for education.

Dr Clarke said: “There is relatively little information on pneumococcal epidemiology across Southeast Asia, which is concerning due to the risks associated with pneumococcal infection and a rise in antimicrobial resistance.”

“We hope this study will provide new data, that will be combined with existing data, to form a comprehensive assessment of pneumococcal strains in Thailand to inform and support future vaccination programmes.”