Analysis of seasonal influenza vaccine uptake among children and adolescents with an intellectual disability.
Less than a quarter of teens with ID get flu shots—easy wins come from giving the vaccine during visits they already attend.
01Research in Context
What this study did
The team mailed short surveys to parents of 11- to young learners with intellectual disability.
They asked one key question: did your teen get the seasonal flu shot this year?
Parents also ticked boxes for disability level, other illnesses, and doctor visits.
What they found
Only 23 out of every 100 youth with ID had received the vaccine.
Kids with moderate or severe ID, extra health problems, or yearly check-ups were twice as likely to get the shot.
Simple ID, no extra illness, and no regular exams meant almost no vaccination.
How this fits with other research
Tsai et al. (2012) saw the same gap in Taiwan: just 38 % of disabled kids got any preventive care.
Both papers show severity predicts use, but Chia-Feng splits the picture—severe ID helps uptake here, while Wen-Chen found it hurts.
The difference is the service: kids with severe needs are pulled in for shots yet skipped for general check-ups.
Chiang et al. (2013) add cost context: youth with ID already rack up 20 doctor visits a year, so a flu shot is one more easy add-on when they are in the office.
Why it matters
If you serve teens with ID, treat the flu shot as part of routine care, not a special trip.
Schedule it during existing visits, especially for clients with mild ID or no extra illnesses—they are the ones who miss it.
One added checkbox on your intake form can double vaccine rates next winter.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
The aim of the present study was to describe the seasonal influenza vaccination rate and to examine its determinants for children and adolescents with intellectual disabilities (ID) living in the community. A cross-sectional survey was conducted to analyze the data on seasonal influenza vaccination rate among 1055 ID individuals between the ages of 12-18 years. The results found that 22.9% of the study participants used the vaccine during the past three years, and the vaccination rate among different age groups varied from 18.1 to 26.5%. There was no gender difference of seasonal influenza vaccination rate among age groups. Multilevel logistic regression analysis revealed that ID individuals with moderate (OR = 1.59, 95% CI = 1.08-2.34) or severe (OR = 2.31, 95% CI = 1.20-4.45) disability, with an illness (OR = 1.64, 95% CI = 1.02-2.63), who have general health exams (ever used, OR = 1.57, 95% CI = 1.03-2.40; regularly used, OR = 1.89, 95% CI = 1.05-3.41) were more likely to have seasonal influenza vaccination than their counterparts. The present study highlights that the substantial disparity in receipt of seasonal influenza vaccine in children and adolescents with ID reflects the effects of disability level, disease condition, and general health exam experience and suggests the need for greater attention to factors affecting ID individuals to improve their preventive health care.
Research in developmental disabilities, 2012 · doi:10.1016/j.ridd.2011.11.011