A new vaccine promises to wipe out life-threatening pneumonia, sepsis and meningitis, new research suggests.
Although the number of pneumonia-related deaths reduced by one million between 2004 and 2015 due to the introduction of the ‘pneumo jab’, the injection only targets the 23 most critical forms of the bacteria, with other strains also being responsible for fatalities.
The new jab targets dozens of bacterial strains, including the 23 most deadly, and can be tweaked to destroy as of yet undiscovered, potentially treatment-resistant forms, a study found.
Study author Dr Blaine Pfeifer from the University at Buffalo, said: ‘We can potentially provide universal coverage against bacteria that cause pneumonia, meningitis, sepsis and other types of pneumococcal disease.
‘It holds the promise of saving hundreds of thousands of lives each year.’
