The 2012 recommended childhood and adolescent immunization schedules have been approved by the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the American Academy of Family Physicians. Three schedules are provided: a schedule for children 0 through 6 years of age (Fig 1), a schedule for children 7 through 18 years of age (Fig 2), and a catch-up schedule for children and adolescents who start late or fall >1 month behind (Fig 3). An adult immunization schedule also is updated and published each year (www.cdc.gov/vaccines). Because of the increasing complexity of the vaccine schedule and the limited amount of space for footnotes, repetition between footnotes has been eliminated. Providers are advised to use all 3 schedules and their respective footnotes together, not as stand-alone schedules. These schedules are revised annually to reflect current recommendations for the use of vaccines licensed by the US Food and Drug Administration and include the following changes from last year:
Recommended immunization schedule for persons aged 0 through 6 years—United States, 2012.
Recommended immunization schedule for persons aged 0 through 6 years—United States, 2012.
Recommended immunization schedule for persons aged 7 through 18 years—United States, 2012.
Recommended immunization schedule for persons aged 7 through 18 years—United States, 2012.
Catch-up immunization schedule for persons aged 4 months through 18 years who start late or who are more than 1 month behind—United States · 2012.
Catch-up immunization schedule for persons aged 4 months through 18 years who start late or who are more than 1 month behind—United States · 2012.
Clarification is provided for administration of hepatitis B vaccine and hepatitis B immune globulin to infants weighing <2000 g and for infants weighing ≥2000 g who are born to hepatitis B surface antigen-positive mothers. Clarification is provided for timing of doses after administration of the birth dose of hepatitis B vaccine.
Clarification is provided for Tdap vaccine use for children 7 through 10 years who are not fully immunized with the childhood DTaP series.
Guidance for the use of Haemophilus influenzae type b vaccine in people 5 years of age and older has been added to the catch-up schedule.
Influenza vaccine footnotes have been updated to clarify vaccine dosing for children 6 months through 8 years of age for the 2011–2012 season. Guidance is provided on contraindications to the use of live-attenuated influenza vaccine.
Guidance for the use of measles, mumps, and rubella vaccine in infants 6 through 11 months of age who are traveling internationally has been added.
Hepatitis A footnotes have been clarified to emphasize administration of the second dose 6 to 18 months after the first dose. A new yellow and purple bar has been added to the “Recommended immunization schedule for persons aged 0 through 6 years” to reflect hepatitis A vaccine recommendations for children 2 years of age and older.
Guidance for routine administration of a booster dose of either meningococcal vaccine (MCV4) is provided. Guidance is provided for administration of MCV4 to children at increased risk of meningococcal disease. The MCV4 purple bar has been extended in the “Recommended immunization schedule for persons aged 0 through 6 years” to reflect licensure of MCV4-D (Menactra) use in children as young as 9 months.
Human papillomavirus vaccine footnotes have been updated to include a routine recommendation for vaccination of males with quadrivalent human papillomavirus vaccine (Gardasil).
Inactivated poliovirus vaccine footnotes have been updated to note that inactivated polio vaccine is not routinely recommended for US residents 18 years of age or older.
Clinically significant adverse events that follow immunization should be reported to the Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System. Guidance about how to obtain and complete a Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System form can be obtained on the Internet at www.vaers.hhs.gov or by calling 800-822-7967. Additional information can be found in the Red Book1 and at Red Book Online (www.aapredbook.org). Statements from the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that contain details of recommendations for individual vaccines, including recommendations for children with high-risk conditions, are available at www.cdc.gov/vaccines/pubs/ACIP-list.htm. Information on new vaccine releases, vaccine supplies, interim recommendations resulting from vaccine shortages, and statements on specific vaccines can be found at www.aapredbook.org/news/vaccstatus.shtml and www.cdc.gov/vaccines/pubs/ACIP-list.htm.
Committee on Infectious Diseases, 2011–2012
Michael T. Brady, MD, Chairperson
Carrie L. Byington, MD
H. Dele Davies, MD
Kathryn M. Edwards, MD
Mary P. Glode, MD
Mary Anne Jackson, MD
Harry L. Keyserling, MD
Yvonne A. Maldonado, MD
Dennis L. Murray, MD
Walter A. Orenstein, MD
Gordon E. Schutze, MD
Rodney E. Willoughby, MD
Theoklis E. Zaoutis, MD
Liaisons
Marc A. Fischer, MD – Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Bruce Gellin, MD – National Vaccine Program Office
Richard L. Gorman, MD – National Institutes of Health
Lucia Lee, MD – Food and Drug Administration
R. Douglas Pratt, MD – Food and Drug Administration
Jennifer S. Read, MD – National Vaccine Program Office
Joan Robinson, MD – Canadian Paediatric Society
Jane Seward, MBBS, MPH – Centers for Disease Control & Prevention
Jeffrey R. Starke, MD – American Thoracic Society
Geoffrey Simon, MD – Committee on Practice Ambulatory Medicine
Tina Q. Tan, MD – Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society
Ex Officio
Carol J. Baker, MD – Red Book Associate Editor
Henry H. Bernstein, DO – Red Book Online Associate Editor
David W. Kimberlin, MD – Red Book Associate Editor
Sarah S. Long, MD – Red Book Associate Editor
H. Cody Meissner, MD – Visual Red Book Associate Editor
Larry K. Pickering, MD – Red Book Editor
Consultant
Lorry G. Rubin, MD
Staff
Jennifer Frantz, MPH
This document is copyrighted and is property of the American Academy of Pediatrics and its Board of Directors. All authors have filed conflict of interest statements with the American Academy of Pediatrics. Any conflicts have been resolved through a process approved by the Board of Directors. The American Academy of Pediatrics has neither solicited nor accepted any commercial involvement in the development of the content of this publication.
All policy statements from the American Academy of Pediatrics automatically expire 5 years after publication unless reaffirmed, revised, or retired at or before that time.
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