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Health Stories
Health Stories
New Vaccines Update
By Segundo Lizardo M.D.
“How many shots will my child need today, Doctor?” is the question that pediatricians, family practitioners, and others who provide healthcare to children answer many times a day.
Vaccines have been accepted in today’s society as a very important part of preventive medicine. As a matter of fact, the administration of vaccines is by far the most cost-effective method for prevention of diseases worldwide and the use of this important medical tool is responsible for a decline in the frequency or elimination of different diseases such as smallpox.
Vaccines or immunizations are biological products (virus or bacterias), that stimulate the body to produce antibodies which prepare the body to fight a future encounter with a certain virus or bacteria and, most importantly, does not have the capacity to make the body sick. Sometimes misconceptions prevent parents from getting their child immunized because they are afraid of making the child sick.
No vaccine is 100% effective, and no vaccine is 100% side effect free. The most common side effects are very mild temperature, redness on the site of injection and pain. But these side effects are very mild compared to the diseases these vaccines work to prevent. This article will briefly explain new changes in the immunization regimen and introduce new vaccines.
Rotavirus Vaccine
Rotavirus is the most common cause of severe gastroenteritis, an inflammation of the stomach and intestines, in infants and young children worldwide. In 2006, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), the organization from the Center for Disease Control (CDC) that investigates and recommends implementation of vaccines, recommended a Rotavirus Vaccine for infants as young as six weeks old in a series of three doses, and ending as late as 12 weeks of age. It is not recommended to start this vaccine after three months of age.
Influenza Vaccine
This vaccine is better known by the public as the flu vaccine. It is not a new vaccine because it has been on the market for many years. However, every year the components of the vaccine change. That is why a dose must be administered every year during the influenza season, November to March. If the patient is less than nine years old, he or she should receive two doses separated by four weeks the first year. Thereafter, only one annual dose is necessary.
Since June of 2006, the influenza vaccine is recommended for:
- All healthy children 6-59 months of age
- Children more than 59 months of age with certain risk factors (sickle cell disease, immunodeficiency, diabetes, chronic use of aspirin)
- Health care workers
- Household members in contact with persons with the risk factors described above
Meningococcal Vaccine
Neisseria Meningitidis has become a leading cause of bacterial meningitis in the U.S. after dramatic reductions in the incidence of other infections due to the use of combined vaccines. In January 2005, a meningococcal vaccine or MCV4 was licensed for use among persons aged 11-55 years of age, and ACIP recommends routine vaccination of young adolescents 11-12 years of age.
For those teens who have not received MCV4, ACIP recommends vaccination before high school entry at about age 15 as an effective strategy to reduce meningococcal disease among adolescents and young adults. Routine vaccination with MCV4 also is recommended for college freshmen living in dormitories and for other populations at increased risk such as military recruits.
Administration of this vaccine is one dose. The most worrisome side effect is the very rare occurrence of a disease named Guillain-Barre Syndrome which is an inflammatory disorder of the peripheral nervous system. Epidemiologic experts have written many articles explaining that the possibility of getting this severe disease from exposure to the bacteria is higher than getting this complication after a vaccine administration.
Varicella (Chickenpox)
Varicella or Chickenpox is a disease characterized by the appearance of a rash on the body that itchs and produces a fluid-filled blister that can result in scarring. The disease itself is not a very dangerous disease, but the complications have the potential to be medically important.
The Chickenpox Vaccine has been on the market for many years. The first dose of this vaccine is given after the first birthday. This dose gives protection against the disease about 85% of the time.
Since December of 2006, the Texas Department of Health, following a recommendation by ACIP, recommends a second dose of this vaccine between 4-6 years of age. If there has been at least three months between the first and second dose, this should increase the protection against Chickenpox in 95-99% of patients.
Pertussis (Whooping Cough)
Pertussis is a disease caused by a bacteria named bordetella parapertussis. Pertussis, an acute infectious coughing illness, remains common in the U.S. despite routine childhood pertussis vaccination for more than half a century and high coverage levels in children for more than a decade. This disease has been vaccinated against for many years as part of the DTaP vaccine that is provided to children at 2, 4, 6 and 15 months and a fifth dose between 4-6 years.
Pertussis vaccine protects the person about 85% of the time, but the immunity decreases with time. Since the 1980s, the number of reported pertussis cases has been steadily increasing, especially among adolescents and adults. These events were attributed to the possibility that teenagers were passing the disease to young children and adults. In the spring of 2005, the ACIP recommended the administration of a new, one dose vaccine for teenagers to decrease the transmission of Pertussis to susceptible individuals.
Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) Vaccine
HPV is a virus of more than 100 different types transmitted by sexual contact. Some of these are responsible for the development of cervical cancer and genital warts. Cervical cancer is the third most common cause of death related to cancer in the U.S. This vaccine is administrated to 9-26 year olds in three doses over six months.
Dr. Lizardo, a member of the Knapp Medical Staff, is Board Certified by the American Board of Pediatrics. He graduated from Pontificia Universidad Catolic Madre y Maestra in Santiago de los Caballeros, Dominican Republic. He completed a pediatrics residency at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in Elmhurst Hospital Center in New York in June of 2006. He practices at 109 S. Texas Ave., Suite E in Mercedes. Office number is 514-1643.