Abbott India has launched its Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine, PneumoShield 14, for children over 6 weeks of age. Abbott’s PCV-14 valent (Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine), offers broad protection, covering the highest number of serotypes, or strains, as compared to existing PCV-10 and PCV-13 vaccines.

A strain refers to a genetic or structural variant or subtype of a microorganism. The PCV-14 terminology in Abbott’s PneumoShield 14 vaccine refers to the fact that this vaccine offers protection against 14 different strains of pneumococcal bacteria. A conjugate vaccine is a distinct type of vaccine that combines a part of the bacteria with a protein to make it work better. This helps the immune system recognize and fight off the bacteria more effectively, making it stronger against certain infections, which can result in severe diseases, especially among children.

Abbott India is one of the leading multinational pharmaceutical companies in India and operates with owned manufacturing units and various independent contract/third party manufacturers based across the country. The company sells its products through independent distributors primarily within India.