2015 pediatric immunization schedule issued

The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) has announced the release of the 2015 recommended vaccination schedule for children and adolescents aged from birth through 18 years in a recent policy statement from the Academy’s Committee on Infectious Diseases.

For the first time, the updated immunization schedule, along with footnotes and the catch-up vaccination schedule, will appear on the websites of the AAP and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) instead of being published in the AAP journal Pediatrics. As new vaccines are licensed, the schedule will be updated online. A parent-friendly version of the schedule is also available online from the CDC.

Are vaccines too costly to provide?

This year’s schedule-which has been approved by the AAP, the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), the American Academy of Family Physicians, and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists-includes current recommendations for giving vaccines approved by the US Food and Drug Administration as well as some, mostly minor, changes from last year’s schedule.

The changes include:

• A new column has been added at age 2 years through 8 years to emphasize the availability of inactivated influenza vaccine and live-attenuated vaccine and highlight the need for 2 doses of influenza vaccine for some children aged 2 through 8 years. A second column has been added for children aged 9 through 10 years to specify when 2 doses of influenza vaccine are no longer necessary.
• A purple bar has been added for children aged 6 months to younger than 12 months who travel outside the United States and need the measles-mumps-rubella vaccine.
• Minor clarifying word changes have been made to the catch-up schedule for the following vaccines: Haemophilus influenzae type b; pneumococcal conjugate; tetanus toxoid, reduced diphtheria toxoid, and acellular pertussis, adsorbed; hepatitis A and B; polio; meningococcal; measles-mumps-rubella; and varicella.
• Major and minor changes have been made to the footnotes. They include an extensive revision of the footnote for the 3 meningococcal vaccines to clarify appropriate dosing schedules for high-risk infants and children; minor simplifying word changes to the footnotes for diphtheria-tetanus-acellular pertussis and pneumococcal conjugate vaccines; and an update of the influenza vaccine footnote to reflect revised contraindications and precautions for the live-attenuated influenza vaccine.

Alternate vaccine schedules are not safer

The policy statement also directs readers to websites for ACIP statements detailing recommendations for specific vaccines, including guidelines for children with high-risk conditions; information on new vaccine releases, vaccine supplies, and interim recommendations related to vaccine shortages; and instructions for reporting clinically significant adverse events following immunization through the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System.