Merck Advances Childhood Pneumococcal Care With Promising Vaccine Data

Merck & Co. released results from the Phase 3 STRIDE-13 trial evaluating Capvaxive (Pneumococcal 21-valent Conjugate Vaccine) in children and adolescents aged 2 to <18 years. The trial found that Capvaxive elicited immune responses to all 21 serotypes, was noninferior to PPSV23 for each of the 12 shared serotypes, and superior for the nine unique serotypes. The proportions of participants with adverse events were generally comparable between groups. In June 2024, the FDA approved Merck's Capvaxive to protect against 21 strains of bacteria to prevent a severe form of pneumococcal disease.