In last week’s Vaccine Smarts column by UTMB’s Dr. Richard Rupp and Bridget Hawkins: Individuals who have lost their spleen or their spleen doesn’t work are referred to as asplenic (“without spleen”). They have trouble dealing with certain bacteria that cause problems, such as meningitis and pneumonia. As a result, there are special vaccine recommendations for asplenic people. Asplenic adults should get all of the usual vaccinations for healthy adults along with the pneumonia and meningitis vaccines.