Prevenar 20 Special Precautions

Do not inject Prevenar 20 intravascularly.
Traceability: In order to improve the traceability of biological medicinal products, the name and the batch number of the administered product should be clearly recorded.
Hypersensitivity: As with all injectable vaccines, appropriate medical treatment and supervision must always be readily available in case of a rare anaphylactic reaction following the administration of the vaccine.
Concurrent illness: Vaccination should be postponed in individuals suffering from acute severe febrile illness. However, the presence of a minor infection, such as a cold, should not result in the deferral of vaccination.
Thrombocytopenia and coagulation disorders: The vaccine must be administered with caution to individuals with thrombocytopenia or a bleeding disorder since bleeding may occur following an intramuscular administration.
The risk of bleeding in patients with coagulation disorders needs to be carefully evaluated before intramuscular administration of any vaccine, and subcutaneous administration should be considered if the potential benefit clearly outweighs the risks.
Protection against pneumococcal disease: Prevenar 20 may only protect against Streptococcus pneumoniae serotypes included in the vaccine, and will not protect against other microorganisms that cause invasive disease, pneumonia or otitis media (OM). As with any vaccine, Prevenar 20 may not protect all individuals receiving the vaccine from invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD), pneumonia or OM. For the most recent epidemiological information in the patient's country, patient should consult with the relevant national organisation.
Immunocompromised individuals: Safety and immunogenicity data on Prevenar 20 are not available for individuals in immunocompromised groups. Vaccination should be considered on an individual basis.
Based on experience with pneumococcal vaccines, some individuals with altered immunocompetence may have reduced immune responses to Prevenar 20.
Individuals with impaired immune response, whether due to the use of immunosuppressive therapy, a genetic defect, HIV infection, or other causes, may have reduced antibody response to active immunisation. The clinical relevance of this is unknown.
Safety and immunogenicity data with Prevenar 13 (a pneumococcal conjugate vaccine consisting of 13 polysaccharide conjugates that are also in Prevenar 20) are available for individuals with HIV infection, SCD or with a HSCT (see Adverse Reactions and Pharmacology: Pharmacodynamics under Actions). Prevenar 20 should be used in accordance with official recommendations.
In adults across all studied age groups, formal non-inferiority criteria were met although numerically lower geometric mean titres (GMTs) were observed with Prevenar 20 for most of the serotypes compared to Prevenar 13 (see Pharmacology: Pharmacodynamics under Actions), In children, numerically lower immunoglobulin G (IgG) geometric mean concentrations (GMCs) were observed for all shared serotypes compared with Prevenar 13 (see Pharmacology: Pharmacodynamics under Actions). The clinical relevance of these observations for immunocompromised individuals are unknown.
Excipients: This medicinal product contains polysorbate 80 (see Description). Polysorbate 80 may cause hypersensitivity reactions.
This medicinal product contains less than 1 mmol sodium (23 mg) per dose, that is to say essentially 'sodium-free'.
Effects on ability to drive and use machines: Prevenar 20 has no or negligible influence on the ability to drive and use machines. However, some of the effects mentioned under Adverse Reactions may temporarily affect the ability to drive or use machines.
Use in Children: The potential risk of apnoea and the need for respiratory monitoring for 48 to 72 h should be considered when administering the primary immunisation series to very premature infants (born less than or equal to 28 weeks of gestation), and particularly for those with a previous history of respiratory immaturity. As the benefit of vaccination is high in this group of infants, vaccination should not be withheld or delayed.