[Pneumococcal vaccination of the pregnant woman in Africa and passive immunity of the child. Immunologic control by the ELISA method].

Thirty-seven african women (mean: 23 years old) were immunized with a pneumococcal vaccine and tetanus vaccine, in a comparative study with seventeen (mean: 24 years old) women only tetanus immunized. Immune response to pneumococcal polysaccharide was studied by ELISA. All women had antibodies before vaccination. Their kinetics in mothers and infants, did not show a significant difference between the two groups. In infants, the rate of IgG antibodies significatively decreases from the date of birth to the fourth month of life. There is no foetal immunisation as shows the total lack IgM antibodies in umbilical cord blood. These results suggest that pneumococcal vaccination pregnant women in order to protect infants till 6-9 months, is not valuable.