| bacteraemia in homozygous sickle cell disease in africa: is pneumococcal prophylaxis justified? | the high frequency of streptococcus pneumoniae as a cause of bacteraemia in homozygous sickle cell (ss) disease and its effective prevention has led to the routine use of pneumococcal prophylaxis in developed countries. the reported infrequency of this organism as a cause of bacteraemia in ss disease in africa raises questions on the epidemiology of bacterial infection and on the need for pneumococcal prophylaxis in that continent. | 2007 | 16531454 |