The CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) issued guidelines for anthrax vaccine use in 2000 and recommended the vaccine for laboratory workers who had frequent contact with anthrax spores, persons handling animals and animal byproducts in an environment that might place them at risk of exposure, and military personnel. ACIP reported that the vaccine’s manufacturer recommended three primary doses at 0, 2, and 4 weeks subcutaneously, followed by three booster doses at 6, 12, and 18 months, and annual boosters thereafter; however, ACIP also reported that the rationale for this schedule was not known.
Injection site reactions were associated with vaccination, but studies on chronic illness following vaccination were lacking. There was also insufficient data to support or reject an association between long-term health effects and vaccination. ACIP stated that further studies by the Department of Defense on the vaccine were underway.
