Pneumococcal disease is a leading cause of serious illness in Australian children under 2 years and older Australians, and is responsible for over a million deaths worldwide every year.
Pneumococcal disease is caused by infection with the bacteria Streptococcus pneumoniae. Symptoms vary depending on the site of infection; they may include fever, headache, earache and cough. Infection may result in meningitis (inflammation of the tissue surrounding the brain and spinal cord), pneumonia, septicaemia (blood infection) and osteomyelitis (bone infection), for example.
We have recently updated our pneumococcal reference page. The updated page includes more details on pneumococcal transmission and epidemiology, as well as detailed guidance on vaccine recommendations by age and risk category.