title: Health benefits, risks, and cost-effectiveness of influenza vaccination of children.
abstract: We estimated cost-effectiveness of annually vaccinating children not at high risk with inactivated influenza vaccine (IIV) to range from US $12,000 per quality-adjusted life year (QALY) saved for children ages 6-23 months to $119,000 per QALY saved for children ages 12-17 years. For children at high risk (preexisting medical conditions) ages 6-35 months, vaccination with IIV was cost saving. For children at high risk ages 3-17 years, vaccination cost $1,000-$10,000 per QALY. Among children notat high risk ages 5-17 years, live, attenuated influenza vaccine had a similar cost-effectiveness as IIV. Risk status was more important than age in determining the economic effects of annual vaccination, and vaccination was less cost-effective as the child's age increased. Thus, routine vaccination of all children is likely less cost-effective than vaccination of all children ages 6-23 months plus all other children at high risk.
authors.affiliation: Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, USA lprosser@hms.harvard.edu
authors.forename: Lisa A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Prosser
authors.forename: Carolyn Buxton
authors.initials: CB
authors.lastname: Bridges
authors.forename: Timothy M
authors.initials: TM
authors.lastname: Uyeki
authors.forename: Virginia L
authors.initials: VL
authors.lastname: Hinrichsen
authors.forename: Martin I
authors.initials: MI
authors.lastname: Meltzer
authors.forename: Noelle-Angelique M
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Molinari
authors.forename: Benjamin
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Schwartz
authors.forename: William W
authors.initials: WW
authors.lastname: Thompson
authors.forename: Keiji
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Fukuda
authors.forename: Tracy A
authors.initials: TA
authors.lastname: Lieu
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003362:Cost-Benefit Analysis; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007252:Influenza Vaccines / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000191:economics*; D032541:Mass Vaccination / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000191:economics*; D011788:Quality of Life; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D015164:Vaccines, Inactivated / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000191:economics
chemical_list: D007252:Influenza Vaccines; D015164:Vaccines, Inactivated