|
2003 Schedule for Childhood Immunizations Released
By Karla Gale NEW YORK (Reuters Health) Jan 07 - New additions to the Recommended Childhood and Adolescent Immunization Schedule include "catch-up schedules" for children whose inoculations have been delayed, as well as information regarding vaccination against influenza. The Schedule is updated annually by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the American Academy of Family Physicians. The policy statement by the Committee on Infectious Diseases is published in the January issue of Pediatrics, with the policy itself posted on the AAP website at www.aap.org. "The changes in this year's schedule are minimal," Dr. Jon S. Abramson, chair of the Committee on Infectious Diseases, told Reuters Health. For example, "we encourage influenza vaccinations for younger kids age 6 to 23 months, who are known to have a higher risk of hospitalization" if they contract influenza, he said. "But there are a number of logistics issues that need to be worked out before we can make any universal recommendations." Regarding immunization for hepatitis B, "we strongly encourage administration of the first dose in the first day of life," Dr. Abramson said, "but it is still acceptable if it is given later on." By publishing catch-up schedules for children and adolescents who start late or who are more than 1 month behind, "we've made this issue easier to understand and made the parameters clearer," by defining, for example, acceptable intervals between vaccinations, he added. Dr. Abramson, who is a pediatrician at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, noted that most vaccine shortages have been resolved. Although supplies of pneumococcal conjugated vaccine "seem to be getting better, we are not yet certain if we are totally through with that shortage." Pediatrics 2003;111:212.
|
||||
|
