Waning of antibody levels induced by a 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine, using a 3 + 0 schedule, within the first year of life among children younger than 5 years in Blantyre, Malawi: an observational, population-level, serosurveillance study

Pneumococcal conjugate vaccines (PCVs) induce serotype-specific IgG antibodies, effectively reducing vaccine-serotype carriage and invasive pneumococcal disease (IPD). IgG production wanes approximately 1 month after vaccination in absence of serotype-specific exposure. With uncertainty surrrounding correlate of protection (CoP) estimates and with persistent vaccine-serotype carriage and vaccine-serotype IPD after PCV13 introduction, we aimed to profile population-level immunogenicity among children younger than 5 years in Blantyre, Malawi.