CDC to parents: Protect pre-teens with 3 recommended vaccines

Experts at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have launched an immunization awareness campaign to educate physicians and parents about the new recommendations for 11- and 12-year-olds. According to a CDC press release, the three recommended pre-teen vaccines are MCV4, to protect against meningitis and its complications; Tdap, a booster against tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis; and for girls, HPV vaccine, which protects against the strains of human papillomavirus that most commonly cause cervical cancer.

The agency has published a new Web site, www.cdc.gov/vaccines/preteen, where you can download patient information in English and Spanish on the vaccines and the diseases they prevent. You can also download educational posters for your office.