The vaccine was for type b, and the other types are rising

Haemophilus influenzae are gram-negative bacteria causing infections
that range from minor to serious, even deadly. They come in two broad
kinds:

Despite the name, it has nothing to do with influenza. It was mistakenly
believed to cause flu during a nineteenth-century pandemic, and the name
stuck.

What the vaccine covers, and what it does not

**Chemoprophylaxis and vaccination are recommended to prevent one type of *H.
influenzae* disease — type b, or Hib.**

Hib was once a leading cause of bacterial meningitis in young children. The
vaccine changed that almost completely, and it is one of the clearest
successes in routine childhood immunisation.

But it protects against one serotype of six, plus none of the
nontypeables.

The part that is getting worse

**While other H. influenzae diseases are uncommon, they have been
increasing in recent years.**

That is the sentence worth carrying. A disease largely removed by vaccination
has left behind a set of relatives that the vaccine does not touch, and those
are on the rise.

It is not a failure of the Hib vaccine, which does exactly what it was made
to do. It is a reminder that "H. influenzae disease" and "Hib" stopped being
the same thing once the vaccine worked — and that clinicians who learned the
first as the second will misjudge a case.

Infections can affect many organ systems, and clinicians are asked to stay
up to date on diagnosis, treatment and prevention recommendations.

Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.