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Article: Wyeth seeking approval for advanced infant vaccine
- Article from:
- AP Online
- Article date:
- March 31, 2009
- Author:
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Drugmaker Wyeth on Tuesday sought U.S. approval to sell a new version of its blockbuster infant vaccine Prevnar that protects against more strains of a bacteria that causes pneumonia and other diseases.
Prevnar, on the market since 2000, currently protects against seven of the most common strains of a strep bacteria, Streptococcus pneumoniae. The bacteria can cause ear infections, pneumonia and more-dangerous, invasive conditions including bloodstream infections and meningitis.
The new version, called Prevnar 13, protects against those seven pneumococcal strains, plus six others _ the next-most common ones _ that cause the same diseases. The six new strains include one, ...