Improving Adolescent Immunization Coverage: The Time to Act Is Now

Association between contextual factors and coverage of the Acwy meningococcal vaccine, after three years of its overdue, in the vaccination calendar of adolescents in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil: global space regressions

The objective of the study was to analyze the spatial distribution of vaccination coverage of bacterial meningitis vaccine: A, C, W and Y (menacwy) and identify the association between socioeconomic and social environment factors with menacwy vaccine coverage among adolescents in the state of Minas Gerais (MG), Brazil. This is an ecological, mixed study, conducted with secondary data from the 853 municipalities of the State of MG, Brazil, from 2020 to 2022, provided by the information system of the National Immunization Program. For spatial statistical analysis, spatial dependence and the presence of spatial clusters formed by municipalities with high and low vaccination coverage of Menacwy were evaluated. In the year 2021, MG presented the largest vaccination coverage (60.58%) since the introduction of the Menacwy vaccine by the PNI. Regarding the analysis of global regressions, it is observed that for the year 2020, as the MG Index of Social Responsibility-Health increased and MG Index of Social Responsibility-Public Security increased, increased the vaccination coverage of the municipalities of the Menacwy vaccine. Finally, compared to 2021, similar association was observed in relation to the proportion of the population served by the Family Health Strategy of the municipalities of the state of MG and per capita spending on education activities: as this indicator increased, with increased coverage of the Vaccine of the Menacwy vaccine of the state municipalities. They reinforce the importance of assessing the quality-of-care management and health surveillance system, professional training, and damage reduction to populations, especially adolescents.

COVID Vaccines in Adolescents and Young Adults

Worldwide, a number of COVID-19 vaccines have been approved or granted Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) or Emergency Use Listing for adolescents and young adults (AYA), which has brought hope to many across the globe. Extension of the EUA for a COVID-19 vaccine to children and adolescents aged 5 through 15 years is exciting news for children, adolescents, parents, and providers of AYA. Many countries around the globe have extended immunization against COVID-19 to younger age groups. At the same time, the COVID-19 pandemic has led to a decrease globally in administration of other adolescent vaccines. This highlights that vaccine recommendations do not necessarily lead to successful and equitable vaccine distribution, and overcoming barriers to vaccination is critical. Certain subpopulations of AYA, particularly those who are marginalized/underrepresented, do not receive appropriate health care. AYA should be offered protection against all vaccine-preventable illnesses at every opportunity. Creating innovative strategies to improve vaccine uptake among AYA should be encouraged.