Immunizations
Aren’t Just for Kids; Adults Need Them Too -
Why Grown-Ups Should Be Vaccinated to Stay Healthy and Prevent
Disease
November 22, 2010
Many people think immunizations are just for kids,
but that’s not true. Minnesota family physicians remind patients
that adults also need to stay up-to-date on their shots to prevent
certain diseases, some with potentially life-threatening
consequences.
A 2010 report from the Trust for America’s Health, the Infectious
Diseases Society of America, and the Robert Woods Foundation found
millions of American adults go without routine vaccinations each
year, which leads to an estimated 40,000 to 50,000 preventable
deaths, thousands of preventable illnesses and 10 billion in
preventable health care costs each year.
“Not only is it important for your own health,” said Christine
Albrecht, M.D., a family physician at Lakewood Health System in
Staples, Minnesota. “But staying on track with vaccinations also
helps prevent disease from spreading to family members and the
community in general, especially infants and the elderly who are
at greater risk for serious complications from infections.”
Immunizations are available to protect adults from a number of
communicable diseases. Not every adult needs every
vaccination and it often depends on what immunizations you had as
a child. Dr. Albrecht says a patient should talk with their
family physician or other health care provider to find out which
specific vaccinations are recommended for them.
Typically, all adults need a Td (tetanus,diphtheria)
booster vaccine every 10 years for life. Tetanus is a wound
infection that causes muscle paralysis and dipthereia is a
bacterial infection of the upper airway that can lead to brain and
heart damage. Also, since there have been more and more cases of
pertussis, or “whooping cough” in adults, it is recommended that
one of the adult Td boosters given between the ages of 19-64 years
be replaced by a Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria, and acellualar
pertussis) injection.
Adults should also consider getting an influenza vaccination
annually. Seasonal influenza, or the flu, is a highly
contagious viral infection that usually occurs during the winter
months. Vaccination is suggested for all person older than age
50, women who will be pregnant during the flu season, residents of
long-term care facilities, those who live or work with high-risk
persons and anyone else who would like to protect themselves from
the flu.
Persons over the age of 65
also
need a one-time pneumococcal polysaccharide (PPSV) vaccination to
protect them from pneumococcal disease. Pneumonia is a
serious lung infection that can be fatal, especially in elderly
people and those with weakened immune systems. For that reason,
those with diabetes
or
chronic heart, lung, liver or kidney disorders, also need a
vaccination even if they are less than 65 years old.
Another vaccination older adults should get protects
against herpes zoster or shingles. Shingles is a viral
disease caused by reactivation of the chickenpox virus years after
it first occurred. It leads to a painful and blistering skin rash
generally on one side of the body. One dose of the vaccine is
recommended for adults older than 60, regardless of whether they had
a prior episode of shingles.
The meningococcal vaccine protects against meningitis, an
infection of the membranes and cerebrospinal fluid surround the
brain and spinal cord. Anyone who didn’t have the meningitis
vaccine as a child or adolescent should receive the vaccine,
especially adults without a spleen, college students living in a
dormitory for the first time and those who travel to countries with
a high incidence of meningitis.
Women aged 26 years or younger should be immunized against human
papillomavirus (HPV), the virus that causes cervical cancer.
One brand of the vaccine is also being offered to males age 26 years
or younger to prevent genital warts. Other vaccinations available
in adulthood include those for hepatitis A, which can spread
through contaminated food, and hepatitis B which is
transmitted by blood, are recommended for people in certain high
risk groups. There is also a varicella vaccination for those
who haven’t had chickenpox or who were born after 1980 and weren’t
vaccinated when they were kids. Adults should also get a measles,
mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccination if they have never had the
diseases or if they were born after 1956 when the MMR vaccination
began and were never vaccinated as a child.
Family physicians know more education is needed. The trust for
America’s Health report showed that just 2% of adults have had the
new combo shot for tetatus, diphtheria and pertussis (Tdap) and less
than 2% of adults aged 60 and older have received the herpes zoster
vaccine.
“We all know we should eat right and exercise to keep our bodies
healthy,” said Dr. Albrecht. “Getting routine immunizations should
also be on the radar because they are safe, not to mention one of
the easiest and most effective things a patient can do to prevent
illness.”
The Minnesota Academy of Family Physicians is a professional
association of approximately 3,000 family physicians, family
medicine residents and medical students organized to assist family
physicians in providing quality medical care in Minnesota. The MAFP
is the largest medical specialty organization in Minnesota and is a
state chapter of the American Academy of Family Physicians, the
largest medical specialty organization in the United States with
more than 94,000 members.
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