Long‐Term Persistence of Mumps Antibody after Receipt of 2 Measles‐Mumps‐Rubella (MMR) Vaccinations and Antibody Response after a Third MMR Vaccination among a University Population
1Epidemic Intelligence Service and 2Division of Viral Diseases, National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia; 3University of Nebraska at Kearney and 4Two Rivers Public Health Department, Kearney, 5Nebraska Public Health Laboratory, University of Nebraska Medical Center, Omaha, and 6Nebraska Health and Human Services System, Lincoln, Nebraska; 7Food and Drug Administration, Bethesda, Maryland
Background.
High attack rates among vaccinated young adults reported during the 2006 mumps outbreak in the United States heightened concerns regarding mumps vaccine failure.
Methods.Serum specimens from university students and staff were tested for mumps immunoglobulin (Ig) G by enzyme immunoassay (EIA). A subset of participants vaccinated for 
5 years and 
15 years were tested by neutralizing antibody (NA) assay. Persons seronegative by EIA were offered a third dose of measles‐mumps‐rubella vaccine (MMR3), and serum specimens were obtained 7–10 days and 2–3 months after its administration.
Results.Overall, 94% (95% confidence interval [CI], 91%–96%) of the 440 participants were seropositive. No differences existed in seropositivity rates by sex, age, age at receipt of the second dose of MMR vaccine (MMR2), or time since receipt of MMR2 (
). The geometric mean titer (GMT) of NA among persons vaccinated with MMR2 during the previous 1–5 years was 97 (95% CI, 64–148), whereas, among those vaccinated 15 years before blood collection, the GMT was 58 (95% CI, 44–76) (
). After MMR3, 82% (14/17) and 91% (10/11) seroconverted in 7–10 days and 2–3 months, respectively.
Conclusions.Lower levels of NA observed among persons who received MMR2 15 years ago demonstrates antibody decay over time. MMR3 vaccination of most seronegative persons marked the capacity to mount an anamnestic response.
Received 15 October 2007; accepted 3 January 2008; electronically published 17 April 2008.
Cited by
Online publication date: 15-May-2009.
Online publication date: 15-Feb-2009.
Online publication date: 1-Dec-2008.
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Potential conflicts of interest: none reported.
Presented in part: 45th annual meeting of the Infectious Diseases Society of America, San Diego, 4‐7 October 2007 (poster 860).
Financial support: National Vaccine Program Office (grant to the study), which is administered by the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education through an interagency agreement (OPHS‐7‐039) between the US Department of Energy and the US Food and Drug Administration.
No official support or endorsement of this article by the Food and Drug Administration is intended or should be inferred. The findings and conclusions in this report are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
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Present affiliations: GlaxoSmithKline (M.H.K.); Sanofi Pasteur (G.H.D.).