Coronavirus fears lead to sudden spike in pneumonia vaccine sales

many people have become sensitised to adult vaccination in the country as we await the first vaccine candidate against the SARS-CoV-2 virus

Anit Roychowdhury (name changed) took a pneumonia shot in his office along with his colleague. Roychowdhury works for a pharma company in Mumbai and has been going to work during the lockdown. He says that they never felt the need to get themselves vaccinated against either flu or pneumonia. However, it was the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic that woke them up to the need to protect themselves against respiratory illnesses.

Many like Roychowdhury have become sensitised to adult vaccination in the country as we await the first vaccine candidate against the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
 

As such, there has been a sudden spike in sales of pneumococcal conjugate vaccines (PCVs) in recent months – a whopping 54 per cent jump from April to June. A part of it is due to catch-up vaccination drives after the unlocking started. The Indian Academy of Pediatrics recommends three doses at 6, 10 and 14 weeks with a booster at 15 months. Another reason for the spurt is probably the rise in adults also seeking to vaccinate themselves with PCV. While GlaxoSmithKline’s Synflorix is a paediatric vaccine, Pfizer’s Prevnar 13 is also given to adults.
 

According to data from market research firm AIOCD AWACS, there has been a steady increase in sales of PCV – from Rs 24.71 crore in March, to Rs 30.39 crore in April and in May it clocked a sales of Rs 38 crore. Compare this with the overall annual sales of FY20 with the previous year – it fell marginally to Rs 450 crore in FY20 compared to Rs 459 crore in FY19.

Both GSK’s Synflorix and Pfizer’s Prevnar 13 saw a 62 per cent jump each from April to June. A GSK spokesperson clarified that there has been a lot of catch-up vaccination happening after the lockdown eased, and that has led to the spike. 

A Pfizer spokesperson said, “While the world is waiting for the Covid vaccine, there are several adult vaccines that are indicated in life threatening diseases, including pneumococcal disease. These vaccines can play a role in prevention as well as reduction in the risk of complications in those with co-morbid conditions such as diabetes, cardio vascular diseases, kidney conditions and respiratory illnesses.”

The spokesperson added. “From our conversations with healthcare providers, we understand that there is a growing interest and awareness among adults for vaccines for pneumococcal and other similar diseases. We also see that a number of large hospitals have started a concept of ‘immunisation at home’, especially for adults with high-risk conditions. This is in addition to the adult immunisation centres that have been set up in hospitals to administer vaccines for preventable diseases. We hope preventive immunisation among adults and the elderly become a mainstream healthcare intervention in the private and public sector in the post Covid world.”

Pune’s Serum Institute recently got the regulator’s nod to market its indigenously made PCV in India. Adar Poonawalla, CEO of Serum Institute, said that the company’s PCV is currently licenced for use in children up to the age of 2. He, however, added, “In the future, we seek to conduct more studies to have it licenced for older age groups. Prevnar and other pneumococcal and flu vaccines have seen a considerable rise in usage ever since people have realised the power of vaccine efficacy and necessity.”

Poonawalla felt that it is advisable for the vulnerable and the older age groups to take both PCV and flu vaccines as it will help in reducing hospitalisation and mortality rates.
 

The demand growth for PCVs has been relatively higher than other common adult vaccines like tetanus and flu. Compared to April levels, the demand for tetanus and influenza vaccines went up by 31 per cent and 25 per cent, respectively, in June. Paediatric vaccines like BCG have seen a demand fall –  from Rs 1.94 crore in April to Rs 1.41 crore in June. This vaccine is given within the first few weeks of birth.