Evaluation of the frequency of immunization information system use for public health research

Immunization information systems (IIS) have been useful for consolidating immunization data and increasing coverage- and have the potential to be a valuable resource for immunization research- but the extent which IIS data are used for research purposes has not been evaluated. We reviewed studies conducted using data from federally supported state and city immunization program IIS- and categorized research type based on study objectives to evaluate patterns in the types of research conducted. Research papers using IIS data published between 1999 and July 3- 2012 were identified by searching the CDC IIS publication database and PubMed. These searches produced 304 and 884 papers- respectively- 44 of which were eligible to be included in this evaluation. The most common research category was evaluation of factors associated with vaccine coverage and vaccine coverage estimates (n = 20). This study shows that IIS may not be used to their full potential with regards to research. Further research is needed to determ