Top 10 vaccines for your teenager

Infants and young children routinely get immunized from the time they are born. But according to a CDC report, many adolescents (ages 11-21) and young adults (ages 22-39) still get sick with vaccine-preventable diseases because they have not received any vaccination.

Three new vaccines for adolescents

In recent years, three new vaccines have been developed and approved to protect young people against infectious diseases that target the adolescent years - human papillomavirus infections, meningitis and whopping cough.

1. Human Papillomavirus causes the sexually transmitted disease genital HPV infection and is a risk for cancer of the cervix and genital areas.

The HPV vaccine is a routine recommendation for girls to prevent cervical cancer among women. Three doses are required, the first of which is given at 11 to 12 years of age. The second and third dose are given 2 and 6 months, respectively, after the first dose. Catch-up immunizations are given to adolescent girls older than 12 years if they have not received it.

2. Pertussis (whooping cough) is a highly contagious debilitating cough caused by Bordetella pertussis or B. parapertussis bacteria. It can cause permanent disability or even death in infants. With pertussis immunizations becoming routine among infants and young children, more cases are now seen among adolescents and adults.

The new vaccine, tetanus-diphtheria-acellular pertussis vaccine (Tdap) adds pertussis protection while maintaining tetanus and diphtheria protection. Adolescents from 11 to 18 years of age should receive a single shot of Tdap. Adolescents who have received a tetanus-diphtheria booster (Td) should receive Tdap at least two years after they received Td.

3. Menigococcal infection is an extremely serious disease that can rapidly progress to shock, meningitis and death. The rates of infection are highest in infancy but there is a second peak in adolescents. A highly susceptible group is among college freshmen living in dormitories.

A new vaccine meningococcal conjugate vaccine (MCV4) provides protection against these infections. Adolescents should receive a single shot of this vaccine during their 11- to 12-year-old check-up, or when they enter high school or college.

Routine childhood vaccines that your teenager must have had

Measles, mumps, rubella, chicken pox, hepatitis B, hepatitis V, and influenza are other diseases that can infect your child. Teenagers who have not received these routine vaccinations (below) during childhood should receive them at the 11- to 12-year old check-up.

4. Hepatitis B is serious disease caused by a virus that attacks the liver. In the US, most persons infected with the hepatitis B virus (HBV) got the infection as adolescents or young adults, primarily through sexual contact, injecting-drug use, or contact with an infected person.

The Hepa B vaccine is still the best protection, and is given as a three-dose course.

5. Varicella or chickenpox is highly contagious with more prevalent and serious complications in adults. Highly susceptible adolescents are those have not been vaccinated or caught the disease during childhood.

The varicella vaccine is the best prevention and protection against chickenpox. Parents who are not sure can ask the pediatrician about a simple blood test that will determine whether the child is already immune to the disease. However, the vaccine should not be given to adolescents who are pregnant or planning on becoming pregnant within one month of vaccination.

6. MMR - Measles or rubeola is another highly contagious disease that unfortunately can have no obvious symptoms in 20% of infected persons.

Mumps infections usually run its course without complications. However, infected adolescent and adults may develop an inflammation of the testicles with a rare complication of sterility. The virus also infects the pancreas and in females, the ovaries.

Rubella or German measles is caused by an entirely different virus than measles, although the rashes might look similar.

A combined vaccine for measles, mumps and rubella are routinely available and administered to young children. Because of widespread immunizations among children, the incidence of measles, mumps and rubella have considerably gone down. However, adolescents who have not been immunized as children, or have not caught the disease as children, such as those who came from non-Western countries, are still highly susceptible to infection. Hence, a two-shot course of vaccines is recommended for adolescents at the 11- to 12-year old check-ups.

7. Diphtheria is a serious bacterial infection that can produce a poison in the body that cause serious complications such as heart failure or paralysis.

The vaccine Td is highly effective at preventing diphtheria but immune protection is not lifelong. Adolescents and adults must receive booster shots every 10 years.

8. Tetanus (lockjaw) is a serious disease that results in painful tightening of the muscles, usually all over the body. It can lead to death in about 1 in 10 cases.

The vaccine for tetanus is usually given in several combination that also prevent diphtheria and pertussis - DTaP, Tdap, DT, and Td. Tdap (Tetanus-diphtheria-pertussis) and Td (Tetanus-diphtheria) are given to older children and adults. A single dose of Tdap is recommended for adolescents 11 or 12 years of age, or in place of one Td booster in older adolescents and adults age 19 through 64.

Vaccines for high-risk adolescents

9. Influenza is a highly contagious viral infection that ‘visits’ the USA and other countries almost every year. Routine flu shots are available for everyone, from healthy children to adults.

A group of high-risk adolescents are candidates for the flu shot - those with ashtma, diabetes or chronic heart, lung, liver or kidney disorders. Students residing in dormitories are also encouraged to receive flu shots.

10. Pneumococcal infection is a serious disease caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae. It kills more people in the US each year than all other vaccine-preventable diseases combined. However, the risk for pneumococcal disease is highest in young children, the elderly and persons of any age with chronic medical conditions such as alcoholism, heart disease, lung disease, diabetes, immune-suppresive diseases, sickle-cell anemia, different types of cancer.

The pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine part of routine adult immunization but many adults who should be receiving the vaccine have not. The vaccine is also highly recommended for persons 2-64 years of age that have medical chronic conditions listed above.

Talk to your pediatrician to understand if your teenagers are at risk for any of these diseases, and make sure your child’s vaccination is up to date.

sources:AAP; CDC; NLM; Mayo Clinic;NFID]

Tags: immunizations, vaccinations, vaccine, human papilloma virus, cervical cancer, meningococcal disease, meningitis, pertussis, whopping cough, Meningococcal Polysaccharide Vaccine, Meningococcal conjugate Vaccine, Tdap, tetanus, diphtheria, pertussis, adolescents, teenagers