Successful immunization of infants at 6 months of age with high dose Edmonston-Zagreb measles vaccine

Abstract

A group of 2097 Haitian infants 6 to 11 months of age were randomized to receive Schwarz or Edmonston-Zagreb strain measles vaccines containing 10− to 500-fold more vaccine viral particles than standard potency vaccines. No unusual adverse reactions were noted. Edmonston-Zagreb vaccines were more effective than equivalent doses of Schwarz vaccines as measured by the proportion of vaccinated children with measles antibody concentrations ≥200 mIU/ml 2 months after vaccination and the persistence of antibody at 18 to 24 months of age. High titer Edmonston-Zagreb vaccine administered at 6 months of age induced antibody concentrations ≥200 mIU/ml in 83% of infants by plaque reduction neutralization and 93% of infants by enzyme-linked immunosor-bent assay with high rates of antibody persistence at 12 to 24 months of age. The World Health Organization recommends high titer Edmonston-Zagreb measles vaccines for routine use at 6 months of age in areas where measles is an important cause of mortality in young infants.