Available vaccines
It may seem that your child is offered an awful lot of immunizations in the first year or two of life. However, that’s because an awful lot of nasty germs are out there, and kids need protection! Many of these infections cause far worse complications if they are contracted in the first year of life than they do if they’re caught later on, so delaying immunization carries its own risks. However, before you decide to have your child immunized, discover as much as possible about the issue, so you can decide whether you are doing the best for your child. Hopefully this book answers your queries, but don’t hesitate to ask your health visitor, GP, or practice nurse about any further concerns.
The diseases your child is offered vaccination against are so rare in the UK – and have been for some time, because of the use of vaccines – that you may have never known anyone who’s had the diseases. So here’s a brief refresher course on the nasties that your child can be immunized against:
- Diphtheria: A disease spread by droplets from the nose and mouth. It causes fever, sore throat, and severe difficulty in swallowing. If complications set in, diphtheria can cause breathing difficulties and damage to the heart, respiratory system, and nervous system. Diphtheria can be fatal.
- Tetanus: Sometimes called lockjaw, this disease is transmitted in soil. Germs enter the body through cuts or burns, causing muscular and breathing problems, which can be fatal. The symptoms of tetanus are painful spasms of muscle contraction and it kills about 1 in 30 people who get it. Tetanus can have a incubation period of 4–21 days (which means it can live in the body without showing symptoms). The organism that causes tetanus is found in soil and animal saliva.
- Pertussis: Commonly known as whooping cough, this causes long painful bouts of coughing and can lead to vomiting and choking. This highly infectious disease is transmitted by droplets from the nose or mouth. The incubation period is 7–10 days. Whooping cough starts in the same way as a cold, but as the disease progresses the coughing spasms become more and more severe. The ‘whoop’ occurs as the child draws breath between bouts of coughing. These distressing symptoms can go on for more than 10 weeks. Severe cases may be complicated by pneumonia (which affects about 1 in 5 infants who get pertussis under 6 months of age), vomiting, weight loss and, more rarely, brain damage and death. Young babies are most at risk (it kills about 1 in 40 babies who get it under one month and 1 in 300 infants who get it under 1 year old).
- Polio: The polio virus attacks nerve tissue in the brain and spinal cord and can cause paralysis. Polio is still very common in a few developing countries, but cases are rare in the UK. The disease is spread by contact with the faeces, mucus, or saliva of an infected person. The incubation period varies between 3–21 days.
- Haemophilus influenzae B (HIB): Infection with this organism has ‘flulike symptoms but complications such as meningitis, septicaemia (blood poisoning), and pneumonia can follow, which is why the vaccine was introduced.
- Meningitis C: Meningococcus is a bacterium that causes meningitis and septicaemia. The bacterium has several strains and this vaccination is against one of the most common strains – C. Meningitis is a serious illness that can be fatal or cause long-term damage to the brain and nerves. The illness is spread through droplets from the nose and mouth.
- Measles: This highly infectious disease used to be the most common childhood illness. It was all but eradicated in the UK when the MMR vaccine was introduced, but since immunisation levels have dropped, cases have risen again. It has an incubation period of 10 days. Infection is spread by droplets from the mouth and nose. Measles may start like a bad cold, with catarrh and a high temperature. The rash generally appears two days after the first symptoms. Common complications include diarrhoea, ear infections, and the chest infections pneumonia and bronchitis. One in 1,000 children with measles develops meningitis or encephalitis (inflammation of the brain).
- Mumps: A viral illness usually causing considerable swelling around the cheeks and neck. The incubation period is 14–21 days. Complications include meningitis or encephalitis, which between them affect 1 in 300–400 children who get mumps; deafness (in up to 1 in 25 cases); and inflammation of the testes in boys, which may permanently damage fertility.
- Rubella (German measles): This is generally a mild illness in children, causing fever, rash, and swollen glands. Complications are rare in children. However, if a pregnant woman contracts rubella in the first 8–10 weeks of pregnancy, the effects on her unborn baby can be serious: Her baby may be born with deafness, blindness, heart problems, and/or brain damage. Rubella has an incubation period of 14–21 days.
If you’ve already had a child, you should have had a blood test in your first pregnancy to check that you’re immune to rubella. If you weren’t immune, you should have been offered a vaccination after your baby was born, with a blood test to check that it worked in boosting your immunity. However, if you’re pregnant and come into contact with a possible case of rubella, you must contact your GP as soon as possible to check you are immune. - Tuberculosis (TB): In areas in the UK that are at high risk for TB, a disease that affects the lungs, your child may be offered the BCG vaccination (Bacillus of Calmette and Guerin) to protect against TB soon after birth. Your baby will probably get a small sore at the injection site after this vaccination, but it heals gradually.
Tags: Available vaccines, immunization for Diphtheria, immunization for Haemophilus influenzae B (HIB), immunization for measles, immunization for Meningitis C, immunization for mumps, immunization for Pertussis, immunization for polio, immunization for Rubella (German measles), immunization for Tetanus or lockjaw, immunization for tuberculosis (TB)
Posted in Vaccination (Children)
