Routine vaccine uptake in school-aged autistic and non-autistic youth: A linked database study

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Pediatric Medicine
• Autism Spectrum Disorder Research

Background:

• Routine vaccinations are crucial for adolescent health.
• Understanding vaccination disparities in autistic youth is essential for public health initiatives.
• Previous research indicates potential inequities in healthcare access for individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate vaccination rates of routine Grade 7 vaccines among school-aged autistic youth compared to non-autistic peers.
• To explore potential contributing factors to observed vaccination differences.

Main Methods:

• A retrospective cohort study using administrative health data in Nova Scotia, Canada (2011-2017).
• Inclusion of Grade 7 students eligible for school-based vaccinations.
• Comparison of vaccine receipt between autistic youth and non-autistic peers, including sibling and early childhood vaccine analyses.

Main Results:

• Autistic youth (73%) had lower rates of receiving any Grade 7 vaccine compared to non-autistic youth (82%).
• Similar disparities were observed for individual vaccines.
• Autistic youth also showed lower Grade 7 vaccine receipt compared to their non-autistic siblings, while early childhood vaccine rates did not differ.

Conclusions:

• Autistic youth are under-vaccinated for routine adolescent immunizations.
• Setting-related factors, potentially within school-based programs, appear to be significant contributors to under-vaccination in autistic youth.
• Further research is needed to identify and address barriers to vaccine uptake in this population.