Medindia LOGIN REGISTER
Medindia

25% of US Toddlers Miss Important Vaccines

by Rajshri on Apr 30 2008 2:20 PM

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has revealed that one in four US toddlers was missing important vaccines thus exposing them to the risk of measles, mumps and whooping cough.

The report in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine said that at least 28 percent of 2-year-olds did not receive proper immunization. By 2 years most children should have had vaccines against 14 diseases including polio, influenza, hepatitis and chicken pox.

The present study analyzed data on 17,563 children aged 19 months to 35 months. The researchers led by Elizabeth Luman found that two-thirds of the unvaccinated children missed recommended doses.

The CDC said that low vaccination rates were responsible for the recent outbreak of measles in San Diego, Arizona and Wisconsin.

"Parents and providers need to do a better job communicating so that children receive all their vaccines on the recommended schedule," Luman stressed. "The schedule was designed to be safe and effective to prevent disease in their children."

Source-Medindia
RAS/L


Advertisement