• Cara Bess Janusz, Margaret Frye, Martin K Mutua, Abram L Wagner, Mousumi Banerjee, and Matthew L Boulton.
• Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan; The Global Institute for Vaccine Equity, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan. Electronic address: cjanusz@umich.edu.
• Am J Prev Med. 2021 Jan 1; 60 (1 Suppl 1): S53S64S53-S64.

IntroductionImproving the timeliness and completion of vaccination is the key to reducing under-5 childhood mortality. This study examines the prevalence of delayed vaccination for doses administered at birth and age 6 weeks, 10 weeks, 14 weeks, and 9 months and its association with undervaccination among infants in Sub-Saharan Africa.MethodsPooling data across 33 Sub-Saharan Africa countries, vaccination timing and series completion were assessed for children aged 12-35 months who were included in the immunization module of the Demographic and Health Surveys conducted between 2010 and 2019. Survey design-adjusted logistic regression modeled the likelihood of not fully completing the basic immunization schedule associated with dose-specific delays in vaccination. Data were obtained and analyzed in May 2020.ResultsAmong children with complete date records (n=70,006), the proportion of children vaccinated with delays by ≥1 month was high: 25.9% for Bacille Calmette-Guerin (at birth); 49.1% for the third dose of pentavalent combination vaccine (at 14 weeks); and 63.9% for the first dose of measles vaccines (at 9 months). Late vaccination was more common for children born to mothers with lower levels of educational attainment (p<0.001) and wealth (p<0.001). Controlling for place, time, and sociodemographics, vaccination delays at any dose were significantly associated with not completing the immunization schedule by 12 months (Bacille Calmette-Guerin: AOR=1.93, [95% CI=1.83, 2.02]; pentavalent 3: AOR=1.50 [95% CI=1.35, 1.64]; measles: AOR=3.76 [95% CI=3.37, 4.15]).ConclusionsTimely initiation of vaccination could contribute to higher rates of immunization schedule completion, improving the reach and impact of vaccination programs on child health outcomes in Sub-Saharan Africa.Supplement InformationThis article is part of a supplement entitled Global Vaccination Equity, which is sponsored by the Global Institute for Vaccine Equity at the University of Michigan School of Public Health.Copyright © 2020 American Journal of Preventive Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

10 keywords...

hide…