Orenstein W A, Markowitz L, Preblud S R, Hinman A R, Tomasi A, Bart K J
Dev Biol Stand. 1986;65:13-21.
The appropriate age for measles vaccination is determined by weighing the risk of measles disease and complications at a given age with vaccine efficacy at that age. In the United States, measles vaccine was initially used in children as young as 9 months of age because the disease was common and complications were greatest in persons less than 1 year of age. In 1965, when it became apparent that vaccine failure was unacceptably high in children less than 1 year and when epidemiologic analysis indicated that children greater than or equal to 1 year, particularly schoolchildren, were the primary focus of measles transmission, the vaccination age was raised to 12 months. In 1976, further studies showed efficacy was slightly higher at 15 months of age versus 12 months or 12-14 months of age. Because the risk of acquiring measles in children less than 15 months was low, the age for routine vaccination was increased to 15 months. This age recommendation may be appropriate for developed countries where the epidemiology of measles may be similar to the epidemiology in the United States. However, this age is inappropriate for many countries in the developing world where the risks of measles and complications from measles are high in young preschool children. In those countries, the recommended age for routine vaccination against measles is generally 9 months.
麻疹疫苗接种的适宜年龄是通过权衡特定年龄的麻疹疾病及并发症风险与该年龄的疫苗效力来确定的。在美国，麻疹疫苗最初用于9个月大的幼儿，因为该疾病很常见，且并发症在1岁以下人群中最为严重。1965年，当1岁以下儿童疫苗接种失败率高得令人无法接受，且流行病学分析表明1岁及以上儿童，尤其是学童，是麻疹传播的主要对象时，接种年龄提高到了12个月。1976年，进一步研究表明，15个月龄时的疫苗效力略高于12个月龄或12至14个月龄时。由于15个月以下儿童感染麻疹的风险较低，常规接种年龄提高到了15个月。这一年龄建议可能适用于麻疹流行病学情况可能与美国相似的发达国家。然而，这一年龄对许多发展中国家并不合适，在这些国家，学龄前幼儿患麻疹及麻疹并发症的风险很高。在那些国家，常规麻疹疫苗接种的建议年龄通常为9个月。
