A literature review on vaccine hesitancy, acceptance, and anti-vaccination trends and future prospects for public health

Abstract

It is conceivable that not immunizing a child endangers both the child and others. If an outbreak occurs, the unvaccinated child is at risk. Smallpox, diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, yellow fever, measles, and polio are some diseases that have been successfully controlled through vaccines. Vaccines have also played a crucial role in avoiding several illnesses. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have recommended and demonstrated the safety and efficacy of these vaccinations. The number of doses required to provide optimal vaccination protection is a crucial component in determining the efficacy of a vaccine. Vaccines against infectious diseases have been shown to be successful throughout history, and several studies have demonstrated their safety and efficacy. However, the number of children who do not get vaccines is increasing. There are several reasons why parents choose not to vaccinate their children, including health concerns, financial restrictions, religious convictions, and a lack of faith in science and immunizations. This review begins with the methodology of conducting a literature search to obtain relevant data for the study. Google Scholar, PubMed, CINAHL, ScienceDirect, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) were used as search databases. The entire review has three parts, such as vaccines from the past to the present, reasons for avoiding vaccines, and the problem of non-vaccination. An organized search strategy was employed to collect literature from PubMed, CINAHL, and Google Scholar. Boolean operators (AND/OR) were used to extract relevant publications. Publications were retrieved after applying certain filters, such as a time frame of ten years, full text availability, English language, and studies involving human subjects. For theoretical literature, the PMC library and Pakinet were searched. Subsequently, some studies were excluded based on irrelevance after reading the abstract and full article and checking for duplication. Most of the studies included in the review were conducted in Western countries, with a few from Asia and one from Pakistan. The literature search utilized the MESH typology.