The Duchess of Cambridge, Catherine (Kate) Middleton, has given birth to a baby and it will soon be time for the royal newborn to get immunized against the various scourges of the mortal world.

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The ever rising rate of infant births has led to the emergence of a thriving paediatric vaccine market. The worldwide paediatric vaccine market has been growing rapidly over the last five years as it has doubled its market share in 2011 as compared to 2005.

The market is expected to surpass $23 billion by 2015, growing with a single digit CAGR during 2012-15, according to industry analyst, Research and Markets.

The incremental growth in paediatric vaccine has been due to blockbuster vaccines that made a significant contribution. These vaccines, which also need to be given to the royal baby, include, Prevnar7 (pneumococcal conjugate vaccine, manufactured by Pfizer), Prevnar 13 (pneumococcal conjugate vaccine, manufactured by Pfizer), Rotarix (rotavirus vaccine, manufactured GSK), Rotateq (rotavirus vaccine, manufactured Merck), among many others.

Research and market predicts that paediatric proprietary vaccines will lead the segment with little less than 60 percent market share by 2015.The combinations and boosters and enhanced paediatric vaccines market are expected to show stagnant growth in future due to lower margins and the mature nature of these markets.