Time to check your health records: Kids aren’t the only ones who need their shots

Infants, children and teens are not the only ones who need immunization.

“Adults that are not current on immunizations put themselves and other people at risk,” said Dr. Yoon-Taek Chun of Pocono Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine in East Stroudsburg.

Following a vaccination schedule throughout your lifetime can save you from a lot of time in the doctor’s office as well as a potential long-term toll on your body.

Consider the following:

Pneumococcal infection causes severe disease in children under age 5. Before a vaccine was available, the infection caused more than 700 cases of meningitis, 13,000 blood infections and about 5 million ear infections. It can also lead to pneumonia, deafness and brain damage, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

If that wasn’t bad enough, consider that pneumococcal infections can be hard to treat because the bacteria have become resistant to some drugs.

In this case, prevention is much easier and less traumatic for children who could simply receive the four-dose vaccine.

Immunizing children also helps protect the health of others, especially those who are not immunized. “This protection also slows down or stops disease outbreaks,” Chun said.

Not only do children need to follow a vaccination schedule, adults do as well.

Consider that sharp cut from a metal object. when was the last time you had a tetanus shot? The protection lasts 10 years for adults.

Do you want to be cut on a rusty nail and trust that your last shot wasn’t 20 years ago?

Haemophilus influenzae type B (Hib)

Human papilloma virus (HPV)

Influenza (seasonal flu)

Japanese encephalitis (JE)

Pertussis (whooping cough)

Poliomyelitis (polio)

Rubella (German measles)

Shingles (herpes zoster)

Varicella (chickenpox)

First dose: Ages birth to 2 months.

Second dose: Ages 1 and 4 months.

Third and final dose: Ages 6 to 12 months.

First dose: Can be given any time.

Second dose: one to two months after the first dose.

Third dose: between four and six months after the first dose.

Adolescents 11 to 15 years of age may need only two doses of hepatitis B vaccine, separated by four to six months.

First dose: Age 2 months.

Second dose: one to two months later.

The third and final dose should be given at ages 6 to 12 months.

If an adult has never been vaccinated, the first dose may be given any time.

Second dose: one to two months later.

Third dose: six to 12 months after that.

MMRV vaccine may be given to children ages 1 through 12 years to protect them from the four diseases.

Two doses of MMRV vaccine are recommended:

First dose: Ages 12 through 15 months.

Second dose: Ages 4 through 5 years.

Anyone 13 or older who needs protection from these diseases should get MMR and Varicella vaccines as separate shots.

Children should get five doses of DTaP vaccine.

First dose: Ages 2 months

Second dose: Age 4 months

Third dose: Age 6 months

Fourth dose: Ages 15 to 18 months

Fifth dose: Ages 4 to 6 years

DTaP vaccine is only recommended for children under age 7. Older children, adolescents and adults still need protection from tetanus and diphtheria. a booster shot called Td is recommended at ages 11 to 12 years and then every 10 years.

First dose: Age 2 month

Second dose: Age 4 months

Third dose: Age 6 months

Children should receive all three doses by age 32 weeks.

First dose: Age 2 months

Second dose: Age 4 months

Third dose: Age 6 months

Fourth dose: Ages 12 to 15 months

First dose: Age 2 months

Second dose: Age 6 months

Third dose: Ages 12 to 15 months

Older children and adults with special health conditions should get the vaccine. these conditions include sickle cell disease, HIV/AIDS, removal of spleen, bone marrow transplant and cancer treatment with drugs.

Haemophilus Influenzae type b (HIB): a disease caused by a bacteria and usually strikes children under 5 years old.

Polio: a disease caused by a virus. It enters the body through the mouth. Sometimes it does not cause an illness. but sometimes it causes paralysis. It can kill people, usually by paralyzing the muscles that help them breathe.

Measles: a disease caused by a virus, and symptoms include rash, cough, runny nose, eye irritation and fever.

Mumps: a virus that produces fever, headache and swollen glands.

Rubella (German Measles): a virus that causes rash, mild fever and arthritis (mostly in women).

Chickenpox (Varicella): Can cause rash, itching, fever and tiredness. It can lead to severe skin infection, scars, pneumonia, brain damage or death. a person with chickenpox can also get shingles.

Rotavirus: this is a virus that can cause severe diarrhea, mostly in babies and young children. It is often accompanied by vomiting and fever. almost all children can get rotavirus infection before age 5.

Pneumococcal conjugate: this is a infection with Streptococcus pneumonia bacteria and can result in a serious illness and death. It is the leading cause of bacterial meningitis in the United States.

Diphtheria: Caused by bacteria, it causes a thick covering in the back of the throat and can lead to breathing problems, paralysis, heart failure and death.

Tetanus (Lockjaw): a bacteria causing a painful tightening of the muscles. Can lead to locking of the jaw.

Pertussis: a bacteria causing coughing spells preventing infants from eating, drinking or breathing. It can lead to pneumonia, seizures, brain damage and death.

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