2011 Immunization Schedule Recommendations

This week, Pediatrics published their yearly update to the recommended immunization schedule. Each year, the immunization schedule is reviewed, and when necessary, guidelines are changed to improve protection for children. Changes stem from new studies that provide insight into immunization spacing, infectious disease experts’ analysis of data from new trends in infection, or epidemics, like that from H1N1 or Whooping Cough. All of this data changes our understanding of how and who we need to protect as time unfolds.
Some of the new recommendations announced this week may require your child to get an additional shot when at the office next. Often we think our kids are up to date when they aren’t. We’re often wrong because of changes made to the recommendations or because our child has missed a dose at some point along the way. Or the records at the office aren’t complete…
Recommendations change yearly to define and hone the best practice for preventing infection in children and in our communities at large. The full recommendations are available in Pediatrics with a nice summary in Health Day geared more for parents.
If you have any questions about your child’s immunization status and their protection from infection, contact the physician’s office.
Talk with your child’s physician about these recommendations to clarify rationale and get their take and opinion. And, bring the immunization record with you! Keeping the book has been shown to protect your child and improves the likelihood of accurate records and thus, staying up to date.

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