Differences in the prevalence of pneumococcal carriage in sub Saharan Africa.

na- not applicable,
a excluded studies with both sick and well when prevalence was not available by category.
b all illnesses including pneumonia & upper respiratory tract infections.
c PCV first licensed 2000,
d WHO recommended calcium alginate & Dacro; p-values and prevalences based on meta-regression; N+ = no. of studies;
Data were used from N = 55 studies. Three studies contributed data to all three age groups, five studies contributed to <5 yrs and >15 yrs, 31 studies contributed to <5 yrs only, 10 studies contributed to 5–15 yrs only, and five studies contributed to >15 yrs only. Settlement, season, population, swab route and swab type were not recorded in all studies, and for these variables we have used studies where data were available.