BACKGROUND: Despite annual updates of vaccination recommendations by the German Standing Committee on Vaccination (STIKO) at the Robert Koch Institute, diseases preventable by vaccination still cause a relevant burden of disease in the elderly. OBJECTIVES: A comparison of the vaccination status of the elderly in Bavaria and Thuringia was carried out. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Medical settlement data from the first quarter of 2007 to the second quarter of 2008 from the association of panel doctors in Bavaria and Thuringia for insured @entity1 aged 60 years and above were analyzed concerning vaccinations, age, gender and multimorbidity. The vaccination rates for @entity683 were calculated. RESULTS: The use of all recommended vaccinations in this age group was greater in Thuringia (eastern federal state) than in Bavaria (western federal state). In both states the administration rates of @entity116 and @entity7394 vaccines were lower in individuals with higher comorbidity and age. Protection rates against @entity7394 were incomplete as a result of inadequate use of combination vaccines. In both states the administration of pneumococcal vaccine was higher in subjects with more comorbidities. In Bavaria administration rates increased with age. Influenza vaccination rates increased in association with age and comorbidity in both states. In elderly individuals @entity683 vaccination was used more often in the third quarter of 2007. CONCLUSION: Old age and multimorbidity are often insufficiently taken into consideration in studies on vaccination rates. The data from this study confirmed the relevant findings from other studies and emphasize the deficient implementation of standard vaccinations in primary prevention. In this study very old @entity1 were differentiated and considered according to age groups for the first time.

[Analysis of vaccination data of XXXX aged 60 years and older from Bavaria and Thuringia].

@entity1 :: ('9606', 'Species') :: ['patients', 'persons'] @entity683 :: ('MESH:D007251', 'Disease') :: ['influenza'] @entity116 :: ('MESH:D013746', 'Disease') :: ['tetanus'] @entity7394 :: ('MESH:D004165', 'Disease') :: ['diphtheria']
@entity1 :: (9606,Species) :: ['patients']
