ACIP Releases Revised 2018 Child and Adolescent Vaccine Schedule

The updated 2018 immunization schedule for children and teens has been released by the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). The immunization schedules are revised annually with the most current recommendations for the use of vaccines licensed by the US FDA, and changes are based on recommendations made by the ACIP in October.

In the 2018 schedule for hepatitis B, information was added recommending that vaccination should be administered within 24 hours for infants with a birth weight of more than 2000g who are born to mothers that are negative for hepatitis B surface antigen. Updated recommendations have also been made for measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccines.¹ The 2018 MMR schedule offers new guidance regarding use of a third dose of mumps-containing vaccine during a mumps outbreak.¹

Influenza wording was updated to indicate that live-attenuated influenza vaccine is not recommended for the 2017-2018 influenza season. The revised schedule for polio vaccines provides guidance for children who have received oral polio vaccine as part of their series. In addition, the inactivated poliovirus rows of the catch-up schedule was edited to clarify recommendations for children aged 4 and older.²

Formatting revisions to the schedules also were made to the 2018 immunization schedules. They include the footnotes' incorporation of bullets and complete sentences, which are designed to increase the ease and clarity of all pertinent information.¹

On the title page, a new table shows common abbreviations and brand names for vaccines recommended for children and adolescents. Also, Figure 2 has been updated with a pair of changes, including the poliovirus amendment. In addition, the rotavirus vaccine row was revised to include the maximum ages for the first and last doses of the series.¹

In Figure 3, changes were made to the medical indications.² A reference providing additional information regarding HIV laboratory parameters and the use of live vaccines is provided in the HIV column. In the pneumococcal row, stippling was added to heart disease/chronic lung disease, chronic liver disease, and diabetes columns to clarify that children with these conditions may be recommended an additional dose of vaccine, in some situations.

References

1. American Academy of Pediatrics. Recommended Childhood and Adolescent Immunizaiton Schedules: United States, 2018. http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/early/2018/02/02/peds.2018-0083. Accessed February 6, 2018.

2. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. www.cdc.gov/vaccines/schedules/hcp/child-adolescent.html#changes. Accessed February 6, 2018.