[Expert consensus on immunization for prevention of pneumococcal disease in China (2017)].

Pneumococcal disease is one of the serious global public health problems, and an important leading cause of the morbidity and mortality of children and adults in China. Currently, antibiotics are the most choices for its clinical treatment. However, antibiotic resistance of Streptococcus pneumoniae has become a severe problem around the world due to the wide use of antibiotics. Hence, the prevention of pneumococcal disease by using pneumococcal vaccines is of great importance. In this article, we reviewed the etiology, clinic, epidemiology, disease burden of pneumococcal disease, and the vaccinology of pneumococcal vaccines, based on the Pneumococcal Vaccines WHO Position Paper (2012) and other latest evidence globally, to introduce comprehensive knowledge of pneumococcal disease, and for the purpose to improve the capacity of the professionals working on pneumococcal disease control and prevention and to provide appropriate evidences of pneumococcal vaccine applications for people who are engaged in public health and immunization vaccination.