Vaccination calendar – when to perform compulsory and recommended vaccinations? [WE EXPLAIN]

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The vaccination calendar is an official document that contains information about mandatory and recommended vaccinations with a detailed explanation and rules for carrying out and organizing them. When are compulsory vaccines performed? Is it worth having the recommended vaccinations?

Vaccination calendar – what is it?

The vaccination calendar is the common name The Protective Vaccination Program. The Protective Vaccination Program is the official document on the basis of which vaccinations are carried out. The vaccination calendar is developed annually by the Chief Sanitary Inspectorate and then published in the Official Journal of the Minister of Health.

The vaccination calendar contains a list of compulsory and recommended vaccines, the rules for carrying them out and the periods of their implementation. The vaccination calendar consists of four parts:

1. compulsory vaccinations – it concerns compulsory vaccines for children and adolescents, as well as vaccines for people who are particularly exposed to infection for epidemiological or clinical reasons;
2. recommended vaccinations;
3. supplementary information – vaccination rules
4. general rules for carrying out and organizing vaccinations.

The vaccination calendar was developed in Poland in 1955-1963.

Is there an individual vaccination schedule and who is it for? Check: Individual vaccination calendar for a child – who should use it?

Vaccination calendar – how is it created?

As already mentioned, the vaccination calendar is developed by the Chief Sanitary Inspectorate. The calendar is developed and published annually, as it is based on the current recommendations of experts, doctors, paediatricians, infectious agents, epidemiologists and public health specialists. All specialists working on the current vaccination schedule form the Sanitary and Epidemiological Council.

The opinion of national consultants from various fields of medicine also influences the final version of the vaccination calendar. The recommendation of individual experts is based on the results of clinical trials, observations and analyzes of the epidemiological situation in the country and abroad.

What should I know about vaccinations? Check: Vaccinations – types, compulsory vaccinations, post-vaccination adverse reactions [EXPLAINED]

Vaccination calendar – mandatory and recommended vaccines

The mandatory and recommended vaccines are listed in the annually published vaccination calendar.

Compulsory vaccines the vaccinations included in the vaccination schedule are free of charge and are paid for by the Ministry of Health. Mandatory vaccinations include vaccines against tuberculosis, hepatitis B (hepatitis B), diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis, acute childhood paralysis, invasive infection with Haemophilus influenzae type B (Hib), measles, mumps, rubella, pneumococcus, and chicken pox. (in risk groups). Compulsory vaccinations are performed in patients up to 19 years of age and in adults who, through their work or everyday activities, are particularly exposed to the disease. This applies, for example, to hospital staff and medical students.

Vaccines recommended they are not obligatory, but are therefore also additionally payable. Parents or those interested in vaccination pay for recommended vaccines. The vaccines recommended in the vaccination schedule include those against: hepatitis A (viral hepatitis A), hepatitis B (people at risk of infection), varicella, influenza, rotavirus, pneumococcus (for people born before January 1, 2017), meningococci, human papillomavirus (HPV), tick-borne encephalitis, cholera, typhoid, rabies, yellow fever.

Do you know what vaccinations should be made before traveling to Asia or Africa? Read the articles below:

1. Vaccinations before traveling to Asia – what and when should I get vaccinated?
2. Vaccinations before traveling to Africa – when and what to get vaccinated for?

Compulsory vaccination calendar – hepatitis B

Hepatitis B, or hepatitis B, is an infectious viral disease caused by HBV (Hepatitis B Virus). This virus can cause acute or chronic hepatitis, often resulting in cirrhosis or liver cancer.

HBV infection occurs most often through contact with infected blood. An example is infection from improperly decontaminated medical equipment such as needles or surgical instruments. Infection can also occur through sexual contact with an infected person. Cases of infection in childbirth are also common, where the baby becomes infected from a previously infected mother.

It is worth noting that HBV is XNUMX times more contagious than HIV. The more that the virus can be infected during cosmetic and hairdressing treatments, piercing or tattooing. That is why vaccination against this disease is so important.

Mandatory vaccination against hepatitis B children and adolescents from birth to the age of 19 are covered, as well as pupils and students of medical schools and universities.

The hepatitis B vaccine is given in three doses:

1. within the 1st day after birth;
2. in the 2nd month of life;
3. in the 7th month of life.

In risk groups, the number of doses is determined according to the doctor’s recommendations.

You can read more about the hepatitis B vaccination here: Vaccination against hepatitis B – when should you get vaccinated? [WE EXPLAIN]

Compulsory vaccination calendar – diphtheria, tetanus whooping cough

Diphtheria, tetanus and whooping cough are included in the vaccination calendar together, because vaccination against these diseases is carried out with the use of a combined vaccine (so-called DTP), which protects against all three diseases at the same time.

Diphtheria is an acute infectious disease caused by a toxin produced by the gram-positive bacterium, coryneform diphtheria. Diphtheria is spread by airborne droplets, and the source of infection can be both a sick person, a carrier, and a healed person.

The bacterium that causes diphtheria enters the body through the nose or mouth and colonizes the mucous membranes of the upper respiratory tract. Therefore, diphtheria most often affects the pharynx or larynx. The bacteria produces a toxin that enters the bloodstream and can damage the kidneys, adrenal glands, heart, liver, and the central nervous system.

Tetanus is a severe disease of the nervous system caused by infection of the wound with an anaerobic bacterium. A characteristic feature of tetanus is intense muscle contractions. Infection is usually the result of soil containing tetanus stains in the wound. Bacteria in anaerobic conditions multiply and produce a toxin that damages the nervous system. As a result of damage to the nervous system, muscle tone increases. Tetanus is found worldwide, but bacterial infections are more common in areas with poor hygiene standards.

Whooping cough, on the other hand, is an acute infectious disease that affects the respiratory tract. Whooping cough was formerly known as whooping cough. Infection is caused by whooping cough and most commonly causes bacterial tracheobronchitis. Whooping cough is the disease that most affects newborns and infants, but it can also affect older children and adults.

The source of whooping cough is sick people, and the greatest contagiousness occurs in the first two weeks of the disease. Infection is spread by droplets when sneezing and coughing, and the disease itself is more contagious than chickenpox.

In the vaccination calendar, it is possible to make a combined DTP vaccine, which protects against all three diseases at the same time. The DTP vaccine belongs to the group of non-live vaccines, so it contains inactive diphtheria and tetanus toxins and killed whooping cough bacilli.

Vaccination against diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis is performed according to the following scheme:

1. in the 2nd month of life (DTP);
2. from 3 to 4 months of age (DTP);
3. from 5 to 6 months of age (DTP);
4. from 16 to 18 months of age (DTP);
5. at the age of 6 (DTaP);
6. at the age of 14 (DTaP);
7. at 19 years of age (dT) without pertussis vaccine.

After vaccination, immunity to the above diseases gradually decreases – in the case of diphtheria and tetanus after 8-10 years, and in the case of whooping cough slightly faster, so maintaining immunity at a satisfactory level requires repeating vaccination every few years by administering the so-called booster doses.

More information about the DTP vaccine can be found here: DTP vaccine – characteristics, vaccination schedule, side effects

Compulsory vaccination calendar – tuberculosis

Tuberculosis is an infectious disease caused by mycobacterium tuberculosis. This disease most often affects the respiratory system, especially the lungs. Tuberculosis infection usually occurs through droplets.

The risk of infection increases with the closeness and length of contact with the person with the bacilli. For this reason, people with tuberculosis are isolated from healthy people. However, it is worth remembering that not all contact with tuberculosis bacilli ends in infection. Much depends on our immunity and the condition of the immune system.

Tuberculosis most often affects the lungs, but there are also known extrapulmonary forms of the disease. Mycobacterium tuberculosis can also attack other organs of the body in the form of multiorgan tuberculosis. Tuberculosis is most often manifested by chronic cough, body weakness, night sweats, low fever, weight loss, and chronic fatigue.

BCG vaccine (Bacillus Calmette-Guérin) against tuberculosis contains live, weakened bovine bacilli. According to the new vaccination schedule, it is administered before the child is discharged from the neonatal unit.

Find out more about the tuberculosis vaccine here: BCG – Everything You Need to Know About This Vaccine

Compulsory vaccination calendar – polio

Polio is an abbreviated and colloquial name for chronic palsy, also known as Heine-Medina disease. Polio is a dangerous, acute, infectious disease caused by three types of polio viruses in the enterovirus family. This disease leads to paralysis of the muscles and, consequently, permanent disability.

Polio is spread by the fecal-oral route. Since the polio pandemic, the disease mainly occurs where no vaccination is given. Thanks to the introduction of mass preventive vaccinations against polio, the number of cases has dropped dramatically. Thanks to action taken by the World Health Organization (WHO), polio infections in Europe have been virtually eliminated.

Polio viruses enter the human body through the alimentary tract and multiply in the intestinal epithelium. The incubation time of the disease is estimated from 9 to 12 days. The multiplied viruses attack the surrounding lymph nodes and then enter the bloodstream. This, in turn, allows the polio viruses to spread freely throughout the body and simultaneously infect the motor neurons of the spinal cord, medulla and pons.

The polio vaccine contains inactivated or non-living polioviruses. The vaccine is given to the patient in four doses – three doses of the primary vaccination and a booster dose (3 + 1).

The polio vaccination schedule is as follows:

1. between 3 and 4 months of age (IPV);
2. between 5 and 6 months of age (IPV);
3. between 16 and 18 months of age (IPV);
4. at the age of 6 (IPV).

For more information about the polio vaccine, see this article: Vaccination against polio – types, effectiveness, side effects [EXPLAINED]

Mandatory vaccination calendar – measles, mumps, rubella

As in the case of vaccination against pertussis, tetanus and diphtheria, in Poland, vaccination against measles, mumps and rubella is performed one Priorix combination vaccine. One vaccine protects the patient against all three diseases.

Measles is an acute, viral, infectious disease that presents with inflammation of the mucous membranes of the respiratory tract, rash and high fever. The disease is very infectious, and a person with measles is infectious for 3-5 days before the rash and for the first 3 days during the rash. Measles is transmitted by airborne droplets and the incubation time is estimated at 9-11 days. For patients, complications of measles turn out to be the most dangerous, which can cause pneumonia, bronchitis, but also meningitis and encephalitis.

Mumps is a systemic infectious disease that is caused by the mumps virus. Mumps is a disease that affects the glandular organs, most often the salivary glands, less often the pancreas or the nervous system. The source of infection is a sick person, and the hatching time of mumps is determined for 14-24 days.

Rubella is a viral infectious disease caused by the rubella virus. The source of infection is a sick person, and the infection itself occurs via droplets through direct contact. In the case of rubella, the infectious material is nasal and pharyngeal discharge, blood, faeces and urine. The hatching period of rubella lasts 2-3 weeks, but it is infectious to other people 7 days before the first symptoms appear and about 5 days after they appear.

Rubella is a disease that most often affects children in preschool and school age, but adults can also suffer. The only difference is that the course of the disease in adults is much more severe. Moreover, if a woman becomes ill with rubella in the first weeks of pregnancy, there is a high probability of miscarriage or multiple organ damage to the fetus.

Until recently, only girls were vaccinated against rubella, which has resulted in rubella becoming a disease of teenage boys and young men in Poland.

Combined vaccine against measles, rubella and mumps contains live viruses, but so weakened and modified that in healthy children they do not cause disease, but only stimulate the immune system to build up immunity.

Vaccination against measles, mumps and rubella is given:

1. between 13 and 14 months of age (MMR)
2. at the age of 6 (MRR).

For more information on the combined vaccine against rubella, mumps and measles, see: MMR vaccine – vaccination against measles, mumps and rubella [EXPLAINED]

Compulsory vaccination calendar – Hib

Hib is an abbreviated name from the Latin Haemophilus-infuenzae, i.e. hemophilic rod type B. This bacterium is common and is responsible for inflammation of the respiratory tract and middle ear. Unfortunately, it can also cause more serious conditions such as meningitis, pneumonia and sepsis.

Diseases caused by the Hib bacterium are distinguished by their severe course. Moreover, if they are diagnosed too late, they can cause permanent disability in the child and even lead to death.

The Hib bacterium can be infected by a child either from a current illness or from a healthy carrier of the bacteria. The risk of falling ill increases while staying in large communities of children, i.e. in kindergarten, nursery or school. The most common cases of the disease are diagnosed in children under the age of 5.

Hib vaccines are a type of “non-live” vaccine. They contain purified fragments of the bacterial cell. Several preparations are available in Poland. Vaccines are monovalent or combined with other antigens (against diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, hepatitis B and polio). The vaccine is given according to the schedule:

1. at the age of 2 months (Hib);
2. months 3 to 4 (Hib);
3. months 5 to 6 (Hib);
4. from the 16th to the 18th month (Hib).

For more information about the Hib vaccine, see this article: Vaccination against HiB – one of the most important vaccinations in a child [WE EXPLAIN]

Compulsory vaccination calendar – pneumococcus

Pneumococcal bacteria are believed to be the most common cause of serious infections in children. These bacteria settle in the nose or throat and very often do not cause any symptoms, especially in healthy children. The source of infection is sick people, but also carriers or healthy adults.

Pneumococci are responsible for the acute inflammation of the upper respiratory tract and, in some cases, can cause infections that threaten the health of patients. After entering the patient’s blood, pneumococci can cause sepsis, meningitis, pneumonia and arthritis.

Pneumococci spread by airborne droplets, and the risk of infection increases when the child is in a nursery, kindergarten or school. Serious pneumococcal diseases most often affect children under 5 years of age. The most severe complications, however, occur in the first two years of a child’s life.

Vaccines against pneumococci they contain only a small fragment of the bacterial cell. Currently, two types of pneumococcal vaccines are available: conjugate and polysaccharide vaccines. Conjugate vaccines are given to children up to. years of age, while polysaccharides can be used only after the age of 2. According to the vaccination calendar, the pneumococcal vaccine is given according to the following scheme:

1. in the 2nd month of life (PCV);
2. in the 4nd month of life (PCV);
3. at 13 months of age (PCV).

Polysaccharide vaccinations are also performed in people at risk – the elderly and the chronically ill.

If you want to know more about the pneumococcal vaccine, check out: Pneumococcal – non-reimbursed vaccine. But it’s worth paying for it!

Recommended vaccinations calendar – rotaviruses and meningococci

Rotavirus and meningococcal vaccines are not compulsoryTherefore, their implementation is decided by the child’s parents or legal guardians. Is it worth choosing these vaccines in the vaccination calendar?

Meningococci are multiple meningitis. They are quite common bacteria, and their habitat is the nasopharyngeal cavity. They are considered dangerous bacteria because infection with them causes diseases that are dangerous to the child’s life. A meningococcal infection can result in meningitis or sepsis.

Meningococci are spread by airborne droplets and infection occurs through contact with a carrier or a sick person. The incubation time for the bacteria is 2-10 days. Meningococcal infection mainly affects the youngest patients, i.e. newborns and infants, because their immune system is not yet able to fight these bacteria.

They are currently available in Poland 3 meningococcal vaccines and they are not reimbursed by the National Health Fund. These vaccines are: polysaccharide, conjugate, and protein vaccines. The meningococcal vaccine should be given in the first six months of a child’s life, preferably around the second month.

If the vaccine is given between 2 and 6 months of age, a total of 3 doses of the primary vaccine and one booster dose are given in the child’s second year of life. If the first dose is given between the ages of 6 and 12, the final number of doses is reduced by one. The vaccine against Gram-negative meningococcus costs about PLN 200-400 for one dose.

Rotaviruses, on the other hand, are viruses that are responsible for the rather unpleasant symptoms of acute gastroenteritis. Incubation of rotavirus infection lasts from 12 to 96 hours. Rotavirus infection occurs through airborne droplets or through contaminated products or dirty hands. The main symptoms of rotavirus infection are high fever, vomiting, diarrhea, and weakness.

Rotavirus vaccines are live, weakened viruses. The vaccine itself does not protect against infection. Its task is to relieve symptoms as much as possible, and especially to protect against intense diarrhea or vomiting, which may lead to dehydration. The vaccine consists of 2-3 doses, which are administered orally at intervals of about 4 weeks.

The first dose of rotavirus vaccine should be given at 6-8 weeks of age and the last dose preferably before 24 weeks of age. The average price for a rotavirus vaccine ranges from PLN 280 to PLN 350 for one dose. Considering that two or three doses are administered, you should expect an expense of about PLN 1000 for the entire vaccination cycle.

For more information about the meningococcal vaccine, see this article: Meningococcal vaccine – dates, complications and price of vaccinations [EXPLAINED]

Recommended vaccinations calendar – flu

Influenza is an acute, infectious disease caused by the flu virus. Although flu is considered a very common disease, many patients mistake it for a cold. What is flu? It spreads by droplets and its incubation period lasts 1-4 days.

The flu attacks the epithelial cells of the respiratory tract and destroys them. Flu is manifested by high fever, chills, muscle aches, chest pain, malaise, nausea and vomiting. The severe course of influenza is associated with its complications, including pneumonia, myocarditis or other chronic diseases.

Flu vaccines they prevent disease in about 40-70% of vaccinated people, but most of all they protect against serious complications of this disease. The flu vaccine can be given to anyone from the age of 6 months. The vaccine is recommended to belong to a high-risk group, especially medical students or healthcare professionals.

Without a refund, the price of flu vaccines is as follows:

1. Fluenz Tetra: PLN 95,73
2. Vaxigrip Tetra: PLN 45,78
3. Influvac Tetra: PLN 47,83

What should I keep in mind when planning the flu vaccination in 2020? Check: Flu vaccine 2020. What should I know? [WE EXPLAIN]

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