IBD: Evaluation of varicella immune status may be warranted in children with IBD.

摘要

Screening for varicella immune status and appropriate vaccination may be required in children with newly diagnosed IBD, according to a new US study. The course of the usually benign and common childhood disease varicella can be seriously affected by immunosuppression. Children with IBD often require immunosuppressive drugs to treat their disease. Following the introduction of a vaccine against varicella zoster virus (VZV), Susan Baker and her colleagues from the Women and Children's Hospital, Buffalo, NY, decided to investigate the immune status of 163 pediatric patients with newly diagnosed IBD. "We know that immunizations have a failure rate and that the risk of varicella in our immune compromised patients could be devastating", explains Baker.