Abstract
Children and adolescents experience some of the highest rates of influenza infection and the subsequent burden on both infected children and their parents/carers is substantial. Vaccinating children and adolescents against seasonal influenza has the potential to reduce the burden of disease in both vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals due to the pivotal role that younger age groups play in the transmission of infection. While countries such as the USA, Canada and the UK have consequently recommended the universal vaccination of children, the vast majority of European countries have not yet extended their vaccination policies to this age group. This review examines the rationale for childhood and adolescent vaccination against seasonal influenza and reviews current vaccination policies in Europe. We discuss key policy considerations for European countries that must be considered when extending vaccination programmes to younger age groups alongside recommendations for European policy makers based on our findings.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 659-670 |
| Number of pages | 12 |
| Journal | Expert Review of Vaccines |
| Volume | 15 |
| Issue number | 5 |
| Early online date | 6 Jan 2016 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 16 Feb 2016 |
Bibliographical note
This is an author-produced version of the published paper. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher’s self-archiving policy. Further copying may not be permitted; contact the publisher for detailsKeywords
- adolescent
- childhood
- Europe
- Influenza
- policy
- vaccine