The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) said it supports the Recommended Childhood and Adolescent Immunization Schedule: United States, 2022.
In a policy statement published online February 17 in Pediatrics, the AAP said the updated recommendations differ little from those released last year by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) of the Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC).
Dr Sean O'Leary
"The only significant change this year was to add the dengue vaccine to the schedule," Sean T. O'Leary, MD, MPH, vice chair of the AAP's 2021–2022 Committee on Infectious Diseases and a co-author of the statement, told Medscape Medical News. "But that is really only relevant for children living in endemic areas, primarily Puerto Rico but some other smaller US territories as well."
Dengue fever also is endemic in American Samoa and the US Virgin Islands.
Notably, a new section has been added on routine recommendations for use of the Dengvaxia vaccine.
The 2022 policy statement addresses regular immunization of children from birth to 18 years and catch-up vaccination for those aged 4 months to 18 years. In addition to the AAP, multiple complementary physician and nurse organizations have approved the updates. The ACIP schedule is revised annually to reflect current recommendations on vaccines licensed by the US Food and Drug Administration.
