Vaccination and Immunization

In this article, we recap a timeline of recent federal agency changes to routine COVID-19 vaccination intended for the pediatric population.

Federal health agencies have adjusted COVID vaccine guidance, potentially changing eligibility and access for pediatric patients. Experts respond in this article.

New phase 3b durability data revealed nirsevimab reduced RSV hospitalizations in infants by 82.7% through 180 days vs no intervention.

RFK Jr. stated he "couldn't be more pleased" to announce that COVID-19 vaccination among healthy children and pregnant women has been removed from CDC's immunization schedule.

A look ahead to 5 key regulatory decisions scheduled to take place during the second quarter of 2025, from a monoclonal antibody to topical psoriasis treatments.

"The measles outbreak that is currently happening in Texas and New Mexico is occurring in an area of the states that have very high anti-vaccine sentiments," Tan said.

Donna Hallas, PhD, PPCNP-BC, CPNP, PMHS, FAANP, FAAN, breaks down key highlights of the latest double issue of Contemporary Pediatrics.

Amin Barakat, MD, FAAP, details meningococcal disease vaccines and highlights the recently FDA-approved MenABCWY vaccine from GSK.

Study findings underscore the effectiveness of a dual approach to RSV prevention.

Nurse practitioner Donna Hallas, PhD, PPCNP-BC, CPNP, PMHS, FAANP, FAAN offers her thoughts on the recent FDA approval of GSK's meningococcal ABCWY vaccine.

The combination vaccine targets 5 groups of the bacteria Neisseria meningitidis (A,B,C,W, AND Y) that cause the most invasive meningococcal disease cases (IMD) globally.

Of those with a minimum age or minimum interval vaccine dose, 44.9% ended up receiving extra doses to complete a vaccination series.

The initiation of a phase 2 study of the investigational 31-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine is expected by the end of January 2025.

The study outcomes were estimated IMD cases and deaths averted by MenACWY vaccination in adolescents and adults aged 11 to 23 years.

"The novel RSV prevention strategies may reduce ICU morbidity and mortality for children," the study authors concluded.

Donna Hallas, PPCNP-BC, CPNP, PMHS, FAANP, FAAN, highlights key takeaways from our October Vaccine issue of Contemporary Pediatrics.

The CDC committee has set new recommendations based on children's age, vaccination status, and overall immunity health, for the 2024 - 2025 period.

A CDC report reviews HPV vaccination trends in US Pacific Islands, revealing mixed progress towards the 2030 goal of 90% completion among girls by age 15.

Among children born in 2020, vaccination coverage was 4 to 14 percentage points lower among those who were eligible for VFC versus non-eligible children.

According to the report authors, girls were more likely to receive 1 or more HPV vaccine doses compared to boys (42.9% vs 34.6%).

The 5-in-1 vaccine candidate has the potential to reduce shots and simplify the immunization process.

A study on Italian vaccination rates and factors influencing Rotavirus vaccine acceptance.

Of the 600,238 bivalent vaccine doses administered by all providers in the study period, 35,114 (5.9%) were done so by FRPP partners.

Though a small number of infants received nirsevimab in the analysis, results support existing nirsevimab recommendations to prevent serious RSV disease in infants.

Samantha Olson, MPH, explains the important role of a strong recommendation for maternal influenza vaccination.

Samantha Olson, MPH, breaks down a study highlighting the effectiveness of maternal influenza vaccination and its respective association with influenza-related hospitalizations in infants.

Investigators of a study published in Annals of Internal Medicine concluded that the BNT162b2 COVID-19 vaccine demonstrated efficacy against the Delta and Omicron variants of COVID-19 in children and adolescents, offering new, extended follow-up period data.

The unprecedented demand for nirsevimab-alip has resulted in a dramatic uptake in production of this RSV vaccine.

The FDA was made aware some health care providers had administered the full single dose vial of the vaccine, which contains “notably more” volume than the 0.25 mL volume indicated for children aged 6 months to 11 years.

Parents who reported the stigmatizing belief “My child is not having sex” were much more likely to rely on health care providers as a source of information than parents who did not report this belief.