TUESDAY, Feb. 6, 2018 (HealthDay News) -- The recommended childhood and adolescent immunization schedule for the United States has been issued for 2018 and published online Feb. 6 in Pediatrics.
Carrie L. Byington, M.D., from the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Infectious Diseases, and colleagues present the recommended childhood and adolescent immunization schedules for 2018, which have been revised to reflect current recommendations for vaccine use.
The researchers note that there have been no changes made to the immunization schedule. Two changes have been made to the catch-up immunization schedule: the rotavirus vaccine row has been modified to include the maximum ages for the first and last dose of the series. In addition, the polio vaccine rows clarify the schedule for children aged 4 years or older. Certain changes have been made to footnotes, including additional information regarding the timing of the birth dose of hepatitis B vaccine for infants with a birth weight of <2,000 grams. MenHibrix (bivalent meningococcal conjugate vaccine and Haemophilus influenzae type b conjugate vaccine) has been removed as it is no longer commercially available. The live attenuated influenza vaccine is not recommended for the 2017 to 2018 influenza season. Additionally, guidance is offered for a third dose of a mumps-containing vaccine in case of a mumps outbreak.
"The schedules are revised annually to reflect current recommendations for the use of vaccines licensed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration," the authors write.
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