ActHIB

The Haemophilus influenzae type b vaccine, commonly called the Hib vaccine, is a conjugate vaccine used to prevent infection by Haemophilus influenzae type b, a bacterium once a leading cause of bacterial meningitis, pneumonia and epiglottitis in young children. It combines the bacterium's polyribosyl ribitol phosphate polysaccharide with a protein carrier, a conjugation that recruits T-cell help and produces a much stronger, longer-lasting immune response in infants than the polysaccharide alone could achieve. It was first licensed in the United States in 1987 as the first conjugate vaccine of its kind, and by 2013 had been added to routine immunization schedules in 184 countries. It is recommended by both the World Health Organization and the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, typically given as two or three doses before six months of age with a further dose between twelve and fifteen months in the United States, administered by intramuscular injection. In countries with routine Hib vaccination programs, rates of severe Hib disease have fallen by more than 90 percent, and the vaccine appears on the World Health Organization Model List of Essential Medicines. It is marketed under trade names including ActHIB, Hiberix and OmniHIB.