Gastroenterol Hepatol (N Y). 2021 Jan;17(1):18-30.

Sheena Crosby ¹, Michael J Schuh ¹, Freddy Caldera ², Francis A Farraye ³

Author information

• ¹Department of Pharmacy, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, Florida.
• ²Department of Medicine, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, School of Medicine and Public Health, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, Wisconsin.
• ³Inflammatory Bowel Disease Center, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, Florida.

Abstract

Inflammatory bowel disease and the subsequent immunosuppressive regimens used to treat this condition increase the risk for acquiring viral and bacterial infections. Ensuring that patients are up-to-date with their immunizations may help prevent the development of several of these vaccine-preventable diseases. Therefore, it is imperative that gastroenterology providers offer vaccinations to patients or direct vaccination guidance to primary care providers to minimize the risk for vaccine-preventable diseases. To decrease the risk for co-infection in the setting of the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic and avoid placing any further burden on the health care system, the call to immunize is more important than ever.