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Adults need 10-year vaccine boost, too

Protection against diphtheria and tetanus wanes in the elderly, drawing attention to the need for a booster shot.

By Susan J. Landers, amednews staff. June 17, 2002.

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Washington -- Over the next few months, supplies of DTP vaccine should return to normal, and physicians will be able to pick up where they left off with patients' immunization schedules.

It is a certainty that children will be the main recipients of the renewed supplies, because adults have apparently managed to avoid their routine diphtheria/tetanus booster -- a practice begun well before the vaccine shortage.

A substantial number of adults in the United States do not have antibody levels that protect them against the two diseases, according to a recent Centers for Disease Control and Prevention study of serologic data on 18,045 people 6 and older.

Only 60% of Americans were protected from diphtheria and 72% were protected against tetanus, according to the study, which was conducted by researchers at the CDC's National Center for Health Statistics.

The study, which was published in the May 7 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine, reinforces what has been known for several years, namely that most cases of tetanus occur in women older than 60 who had not received even the primary series of DTP shots. Older men are more likely to have protection from immunizations received while in the armed forces or from boosters following on-the-job injuries.

The CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recommends that the adult formulation of diphtheria and tetanus toxoids be given every 10 years beginning at 11 or 12. Infants and younger children receive the combined primary series consisting of diphtheria and tetanus toxoids and the acellular pertussis vaccine. [...]