More teens are being vaccinated against HPV, but less than half are up to date, according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
HPV vaccination rates also continue to be far behind tetanus, diphtheria and acellular pertussis (Tdap) and meningococcal conjugate (MenACWY) vaccination rates.
“Protection against HPV-related cancers will continue to increase if adolescents and their parents are educated about the cancer prevention benefits of HPV vaccine and clinicians consistently recommend and simultaneously administer Tdap, MenACWY, and HPV vaccine at age 11-12 years,” authors wrote in the study published today in the Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
Researchers analyzed data on nearly 21,000 adolescents from the 2017 National Immunization Survey and found that for HPV vaccine:
- 65.5% had at least one dose, up from 60.4% in 2016,
- 48.6% were up to date, up from 43.4% in 2016,
- 53.1% of females were up to date compared to 44.3% of males, and
- 78% of teens in Washington, D.C., were up to date compared to 28.8% in Mississippi.
Since 2013, HPV vaccination has increased about five percentage points each year. Rates are lower outside metropolitan areas, which may be due to a shortage of health care providers, according to the report.
The survey found vaccination rates also increased for MenACWY. About 85.1% of teens had at least one dose, up from 82.2% in 2016. About 44.3% had at least two doses, up from 39.1%. Tdap rates rose slightly from 88% to 88.7%. About 14.5% of 17-year-olds received a meningococcal B vaccine, which is not part of the routine schedule.
