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Vaccination is a form of immunization of a child or an adult, consisting in the administration of weakened, killed microorganisms or their fragments in order to produce by the immunized organism specific immunity for a given disease.
The vaccination calendar includes the so-called compulsory vaccinationswhich all children must receive, and vaccinations recommended. The latter are made by parents who buy the vaccine at their own expense.
Mandatory vaccinations include basic and supplementary (booster) vaccinations against the diseases discussed below.
Tuberculosis (BCG vaccine). A newborn baby is vaccinated in the neonatal unit after the first day of life. In the latest calendar, booster vaccinations have been abandoned in older children.
Hepatitis B (hepatitis B). The first dose of the vaccine is given to the newborn baby right after birth – together with the BCG vaccine. Subsequent doses are given at 2 and 7 months of age. Booster doses are not needed in healthy children.
Diphtheria, whooping cough and tetanus (the so-called DI-PER-TE vaccine). In the first year of life, the child receives 3 doses of the primary vaccination subcutaneously or intramuscularly: after the 2nd month, in the 3rd-4th month. and in 5-6. month of life. Booster doses are given between 16 and 18 months of age and at 6 years of age.
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Poliomyelitis (Heine-Medin disease). Basic vaccination is a subcutaneous or intramuscular administration of 3 doses of the vaccine: on 3/4, 5/6. and on 16/18. month of the baby’s life. A booster dose is given at the age of 6.
Haemophilus influenzae typu B. Vaccination prevents many diseases caused by this bacterium (including meningitis, epiglottitis and pneumonia). Primary vaccination is 3 doses of the vaccine administered intramuscularly or subcutaneously at the same time as the DI-PER-TE vaccination. A booster dose is given on 16/18. month of life.
Measles, mumps, rubella (MMR vaccine). Basic vaccination is based on subcutaneous injection of the vaccine on 13/14. month of life and in the 10th or 11th-12th years of age (the latter term applies to girls who have not been vaccinated at the age of 10).
W school period booster vaccinations against diphtheria and tetanus are given (at age 14 and 19). In children who have not been vaccinated against hepatitis B in the neonatal period, three basic vaccinations against this disease are also performed.
In order to avoid giving infants more injections at one time, they are recommended for primary immunization combination vaccineswhich immunize against two or more diseases. The downside of this solution is that parents have to buy the vaccine at their own expense. It is therefore worth remembering that the effectiveness of combination vaccines is the same as that of state-reimbursed monovalent vaccines.
Vaccinations recommended include immunization of the child against:
– rotavirus diarrhea,
– invasive pneumococcal disease,
– invasive meningococcal disease,
– flu,
– human papillomavirus (HPV) infections.
Detailed information on the dates of recommended vaccinations and indications for their implementation are provided by paediatricians and family doctors.
Text: lek. med. Grażyna Słodek