Immunisation coverage in children with cerebral palsy compared with the general population.

Aim To compare immunisation coverage of a cerebral palsy ( CP) cohort with the known general population vaccination coverage statistics. Methods A cohort of children with CP aged less than 7 years was extracted from the Victorian Cerebral Palsy Register. The vaccination status of these children was compared with the general population using the Australian Childhood Immunisation Register ( ACIR). Details that were audited included overall 'up-to-date' status of immunisations and individual vaccines missed. Results The CP cohort consisted of 449 children. Eighty-six or 19.2% (95% confidence intervals 15.6-23.1%) of these children were not 'up to date' ( NUTD) with the Australian immunisation schedule at the time of the ACIR data link (13 March 2009). This NUTD result is well above the general population percentage (range 6.4-8%). This group was divided into subgroups based on age, with all groups having significantly lower rates of immunisation, varying from 100% NUTD in the youngest subgroup to 18.6% in the oldest subgroup. The most common vaccine NUTD was MMR (measles, mumps and rubella), followed by polio and DTaP (diphtheria-tetanus-acellular pertussis). Conclusion This study demonstrates that children with CP are at high risk of incomplete and delayed immunisation, a significant problem given the increased health-care needs of this patient group and their increased vulnerability to the complications of vaccine-preventable diseases. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]