Vaccination of patients with inflammatory bowel disease. Practical recommendations.

Patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) have a greater risk of infection associated with the endogenous immunosuppression brought about by their underlying disease as well as the exogenous immunosuppression resulting from their therapies. In the last few years guidelines and consensus papers have been issued on the indication of vaccines for these patients as primary prevention of infection. However, vaccine coverage is low, likely because the risk for infection and both safety and efficacy concerns regarding vaccines are scarcely perceived in such cases. The available scientific evidence shows that immunization is safe for most preparations, and bears no association with an increased risk for disease activity. This paper reviews the available scientific literature, and provides recommendations on the vaccination of adults with IBD.