Ask the Experts

All health care workers, including those not involved in direct patient care, are responsible for receiving all recommended vaccines.

Revised ACIP General Recommendations on Immunization provide advice on aspiration and a range of other topics.

Should AIDS patients be given flu shots? What are the storage requirements for the shingles vaccine? APhA Liaison Representative to ACIP answers these and other questions.

Although small improvements were seen for Tdap and HPV vaccine coverage from 2010 to 2011, the number of U.S. adults getting recommended vaccines remains well below optimal levels.

Experts examine cases of serious shoulder injuries resulting from incorrect technique and provide step-by-step guide to proper administration of intramuscular injection.

APhA Chief Strategy Officer Mitchel Rothholz provides overview of profession’s immunization activities to ACIP.

APhA-compiled chart lists commonly administered vaccines and information regarding their preparation.

OTCs Today

Move is part of bigger push to align pharmacists with team-based care

Insider info on recommendation to immunize males aged 11–12 years with HPV4 vaccine; other topics included hepatitis B vaccination in patients with diabetes and meningococcal vaccine.

The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practice (ACIP) met in Atlanta, GA, on October 27–28, 2010. Complete minutes of the meeting will be published on the CDC National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases (NCIRD) website (www.cdc.gov/vaccines/recs/acip).

Pertussis vaccine, current influenza activity, and pneumococcal conjugate vaccine in adults among issues discussed by committee.

Committee addresses issues surrounding Japanese encephalitis, pertussis, and rotavirus vaccines, among others.

Committee discusses issues surrounding pneumococcal, Japanese encephalitis, and many other vaccines.

Committee discusses issues surrounding influenza, meningococcal, pneumococcal, and human papillomavirus vaccines, among others.

Immunization Update

Committee discusses intranasal influenza vaccine preference in children, supplemental pneumococcal conjugate vaccine dose for older adults, and more

Experts provide overview of Guillain–Barré syndrome (GBS), review GBS risk among influenza vaccines, and review immunization recommendations for patients’ with GBS.

Although variables make the measurement of effectiveness difficult to interpret, morbid obesity is a high-risk indication for which influenza is particularly needed.

None of the currently approved formulations are adjuvanted.

ACIP recommendations provide valuable guidance on use and monitoring of antiviral agents for treatment and prevention of influenza.

Ask the Experts: High-dose influenza vaccination in the elderly

Although not perfect, the influenza vaccine remains the best tool to protect against the virus.

As Governor Cuomo declares disaster emergency, New York pharmacies struggle to meet increased demand for flu vaccine.

About one-quarter of more than 2,400 U.S. physicians report encountering more patients with influenza at this point in the season than ever before in their careers.

CDC reports a vaccine effectiveness of only 27% among individuals 65 years or older for the 2012–13 influenza vaccine.

Allergic reaction to egg can be severe; therefore, understanding the current recommendations and concerns for influenza vaccination in patients with egg allergy is important.

The 2012–13 started early and is hitting hard; stay current on the latest information.

CDC reports that circulation of H1N1 is the highest it's been since the 2009 pandemic.

Learn the optimal schedule for administering the 23-valent pneumococcal vaccine.

Learn about the concurrent administration of the zoster and pneumococcal vaccines.

Although PPSV23 is not a perfect vaccine, it still reduces illness and death from pneumococcal disease.

Pharmacists may be called upon to help primary care providers navigate difficult dosing guidelines for PCV13 and PPSV23.

Rules for postvaccination testing following hepatitis B vaccination of health care workers.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and its Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) have identified high-risk populations for which vaccination is recommended: intravenous drug users, individuals engaging in high-risk sexual behavior, patients in long-term care facilities, and patients with chronic liver disease, with HIV infection, or who receive hemodialysis.

In what region of the arm should this subcutaneous injection be administered?

Recommendations for herpes zoster vaccine remain the same; other ACIP recommendations provided

The documented benefits of RotaTeq and Rotarix outweigh the suggested increased risk for intussusception or any other potential risks

ACIP does not recommend antipyretics before or at the time of vaccination, but they can be used to treat fever and local discomfort following vaccination.

Question for our experts on reasons for/against pretreatment with acetaminophen (APAP) for infant vaccines.

Pharmacists should consider several options for treating patients traveling to malarious areas.