The article is devoted to the vaccine issue, which is so important now and exciting for many. So what is vaccination? Is it a necessary measure that guarantees protection against terrible diseases, or a "universal evil" that carries side effects and harm to health? We will tell about the history of vaccination, its main schemes and myths related to the immunization process.
What is vaccination?
Vaccination is a method of preventive measures that protects the child and / or adult completely from certain diseases or weakens their course and consequences for the body.
This effect is achieved by the so-called "training" of immunity. How can vaccination and vaccination help in this? A person is injected with antigenic material (simply put - a weakened version of a virus / pathogenic bacterium or its component), the name system rushes to fight the "stranger". What is going to happen? Immunity kills the "spy" and "remembers" him. That is, antibodies appear that will "sleep" until the virus / microbe / fragments thereof re-enter. Only with the reappearance of red blood cells will destroy it much faster. Based on the foregoing, vaccination is a deliberate infection of the body in order to activate and develop immunity against a specific disease.
There are many ways of vaccination, the most common are injection (injections), oral (drops). There are also the so-called contact vaccinations, when, for example, children are brought to a child with chickenpox (popularly called chickenpox) so that they become infected and get sick. This is done because the chickenpox virus is much easier and without consequences transferred in childhood compared with adolescents and adults. The same disease can be very dangerous during pregnancy for both the mother and the child, so getting sick at an early age means protecting yourself in the older one.
A bit of history
History claims that human vaccination came to us from traditional medicine. But at the time of this invention, all, in principle, medicine was folk, so the definition is not entirely correct.
In ancient times, when smallpox took hundreds of lives, Chinese doctors were the first to use the so-called inoculation - inoculation with the smallpox vesicles of a sick person in a mild form. But such a vaccination had both pros and cons. A mild form for one sick person could be the result of his good immunity and bring death to the vaccinated.
In Britain, there was an assumption that milkmaids infected with cowpox from animals (not a dangerous disease for humans) are not able to catch smallpox. The first to confirm this was pharmacist Jenner. His observations confirmed the hypothesis, and in 1798 he vaccinated cowpox in the boy, and after some time - the natural one. The fact that the child did not get sick, and vaccination in this way was a serious step in medicine. But Jenner had neither the ability nor the assets to prove and substantiate his discovery scientifically. A hundred years later, this was done by the world-famous French microbiologist Louis Pasteur. With the imperfect equipment of that time, he was able to weaken the causative agents of diseases and purposefully vaccinate patients with them. So, in 1881, a vaccine was created against the most dangerous disease - anthrax, and in 1885 - against the deadly prion virus - rabies. The great scientist himself proposed the name for this method of protection against diseases - "vaccination", from the Latin word vaccus - cow.
Vaccination of children. Schemes
In this section we will consider the most basic vaccinations for children.
The first vaccination is waiting for the baby in the hospital. When he turns half a day (12 hours), hepatitis B vaccine is given. In the first week of a child's life, it is necessary to vaccinate against tuberculosis (all known BCG). When the baby is one month old, hepatitis B revaccination (re-vaccination) is performed. After two months, when the child is three months old, he is vaccinated with a comprehensive vaccine against such dangerous diseases as diphtheria, pertussis and tetanus. Vaccination against poliomyelitis can be separately in drops, or in the same injection injection.
Next, the baby will be revaccinated at four and six months.
When the child celebrates his first birthday, he will be vaccinated against mumps (mumps among the people), measles and rubella. These are quite dangerous infections, do not take them seriously. Measles causes very serious eye complications, and rubella is dangerous for girls who grow up and become mothers. During pregnancy, rubella disease leads to miscarriage or impaired fetal development, the appearance of abnormalities in him. The vaccination schedule involves repeating vaccinations according to a schedule drawn up by pediatricians and tested over decades.
In a year and a half, revaccination from the same diseases is carried out. In a year and eight months - revaccination again, and the baby can rest from vaccinations to six years.
Vaccination preparation
Unfortunately, vaccination is not a panacea for all diseases, but it can protect a child from the most common and dangerous ailments. The vaccine will give a positive result if you prepare for it correctly.
What does preparation for vaccination include and is it needed? The answer is unequivocal - needed. What is included here? Firstly, it is monitoring the baby for about a week before vaccination. It is necessary to carefully examine the child for allergies, a rash, and check whether he has symptoms of influenza or other acute respiratory viral infections. You can begin to measure the temperature two to three days before vaccination. It is also advisable to take general blood and urine tests so that they are ready before the moment of vaccination. Why is this done? Then, to make sure that the child is healthy and does not have a latent or sluggish disease.
Even mandatory vaccination is not carried out if the child is unwell, as this overloads the baby’s immunity, and not only does not allow the body to fully combat toxoid, but also enhances the course of the existing disease.
Before the vaccination of the child, a pediatrician must check up.
What you need to know about the post-vaccination period
The post-vaccination period is no less important than examination before vaccination. The key to a successfully formulated immunity is both the absence of a disease before vaccination, and not overloaded immunity after.
Avoid visiting public places with a newly vaccinated child. Be sure to ensure that the baby does not freeze, does not wet his feet. If for some time after visiting the hospital he will complain about a lack of appetite, do not force him to eat. The body is busy fighting with the toxoid (or fragment) of the causative agent of the disease, distraction to an overloaded stomach does not need him.
It is worth knowing that small children after vaccination can be capricious for some time, feel bad and have little, or, conversely, sleep long. A slight increase in temperature after vaccination is also the norm. After complex vaccinations (DTPs), some pediatricians advise on giving the baby an antipyretic (“Nurofen” or “Panadol”) upon arrival home to eliminate symptoms and general weakness, which is also possible.
It is worth being very attentive to the child in the post-vaccination period. The main thing is to distinguish between understanding the easy predictable consequences of vaccination with the development of serious side effects or anaphylactic shock. Some doctors advise after a vaccination to walk for about an hour near the clinic, so that in case of deterioration in the condition of the child as soon as possible deliver him to doctors who can provide emergency care.
Polio vaccination
Poliomyelitis is a very dangerous disease that can hardly be cured. If a person who is ill with them survives, then he will most likely remain disabled for life. The consequences of the disease are disorders in the nervous system and musculoskeletal system.
Vaccination is the only way to protect yourself from the disease.
Causes the disease poliovirus, which attacks the gray matter of the spinal cord and, accordingly, affects the nervous system. Depending on the location of development, the virus can lead to paralysis and irreversible paresis.
The study of the disease and its causative agent began at the end of the 19th century, and by the middle of the 20th, when the disease reached the epidemic in America and Europe, the introduction of compulsory vaccination was a salvation from the disease and the step that helped to defeat the disease. The number of cases from tens of thousands decreased to several hundred in the Soviet Union.
Vaccination against poliomyelitis is now carried out according to the scheme that we described above. One has only to say that there are two types of vaccines: oral (OPV, live) and inactivated ("killed"), in the form of an injection, - IPV. The best vaccination schedule is vaccination the first two times with an inactivated vaccine plus two times the OPV.
Do not forget that we are talking about a very dangerous disease that could only be stopped thanks to the appearance of vaccinations and compulsory vaccination.
Flu vaccine
Influenza is an acute viral infection of the respiratory tract. The name comes from the French word “grab, grab” and quite clearly conveys the main picture of the disease. The danger of this virus is that it mutates very quickly, mutates. As a result, today we have about two thousand variants of this virus. Many patients carry the disease on their feet, continuing to go to work or to an educational institution, simultaneously infecting others. But this does not mean that the disease is so safe. According to the World Health Organization, every year in the world, the flu takes from a quarter to half a million lives. During the years of the raging of especially dangerous strains, this figure can reach a million or more.
Vaccination against influenza will not protect against infection with new strains, but it will protect you from infection already known. This disease can be especially dangerous for people with weakened immune systems, HIV, autoimmune diseases, bronchial asthma, cardiovascular disorders and children whose flu often goes into complications in the form of bronchitis and pneumonia, as well as infants, women during pregnancy and people the elderly who most often die from the effects of the disease. Vaccination in this case will save at least part of the virus modifications, and the rest of its variations will help to destroy the immune system faster.
Like polio vaccination, the flu shot was developed in the 19th century, and was tested on soldiers during World War II.
The consequences of vaccinations. Truth and fiction
Despite the benefits that immunization brings, it can also be dangerous for certain groups. Vaccination of children (and adults) with serious contraindications can lead to death or disability. Because of such cases, the media is cultivating the myth that vaccination is almost a murder.
To begin with, we find out who in no case should be vaccinated. Contraindications to vaccinations are both absolute and temporary (for example, the disease currently makes vaccination contraindicated, but you can vaccinate after recovery).
Constant contraindications include:
- Serious reaction to a specific vaccine before. Particularly complicated by angioedema and / or temperatures up to 40.
- Immunodeficiency conditions. This group includes patients with HIV, as well as those undergoing / undergoing immunosuppressive therapy (taking drugs that suppress immunity).
Temporary contraindications to vaccination include the presence and detection of a latent or overt infection in a child, which is currently proceeding in an acute or chronic form. Also, for infants, before the first DTP, a visit to a neurologist is shown. If the baby will have neurological disorders, it should be vaccinated only after they have been stopped / cured.
Vaccination of an adult, in principle, has the same contraindications as in a child. In adulthood, a person needs to be vaccinated against diphtheria every ten years of life. Before going to the doctor, you need to measure the temperature and, ideally, take blood and urine tests.
Do I need to give my child antihistamines before vaccination?
Some pediatricians advise giving the antiallergic drug to the baby before vaccination, while others - with all hands against it. But what about mom?
The famous doctor Eugene Komarovsky does not recommend these drugs before vaccination. He believes that this will only prevent the child's body from fighting the vaccine toxoid.
In what cases are antiallergenic drugs needed before vaccination? This can be recommended when the baby had a local reaction to the vaccine, but it did not go into the category of serious or severe.
Do I need vaccinations?
You got the answer to this question above if you carefully read the article. It is necessary to vaccinate a child, but do it with a serious approach and not through the sleeves. Vaccinations have saved the lives and health of millions of children. There are also cases of terrible complications from them. But, as you already understood, these complications do not come from nowhere. If the mother and the pediatrician did not keep track of the condition of the child, and an unhealthy baby was vaccinated, this can lead to unpredictable consequences. This happens because the body is already struggling with the disease. And even if this is a commonplace ARVI, immunity assets have already been thrown to its elimination, the immune system may not be able to defeat a new “enemy”. Therefore, be sure to monitor the condition of the child both before and after vaccination.
The essence of vaccination is to protect, not harm, and doctors cannot cope with the fight against diseases without adequate help from their parents.
Vaccination Myths
There are many myths about vaccinating children that can intimidate the baby’s relatives and put them at the crossroads of “vaccinate - do not vaccinate”.
For example, in the last century, British doctor Wakefield wrote a work that stated that measles / mumps / rubella vaccination leads to autism. His theory, which was completely contrary to science, existed for a rather long time, until it was criticized and refuted, since the autism syndrome, although it is not completely studied, but its connection with vaccination has not been proved either.
Recently, cases of serious side effects after vaccination have become more frequent, which, in turn, has led to many refusals from vaccinations. There is a trend of "anti-vaccination mothers" who widely advertise their position in social networks and real communication. The trouble is that these mothers are new to both the history of vaccination and the history of many epidemics that were stopped only thanks to vaccinations.
conclusions
To vaccinate or not, the parents of the child are now entitled to decide. Do not forget also that not all children can be vaccinated. But if your child is healthy, do not tempt fate. People are now actively migrating, on the streets there are many people from countries where terrible diseases are still raging. But, for example, tetanus in general is almost everywhere, and the consequences of infection with it are very, very deplorable. And although the vaccine does not give one-hundred-percent protection (and what now can give it?), But it provides the child’s body with a chance to overcome the disease and get out of this battle with minimal losses. Do not pay attention to myths, conjectures and rumors, the only thing that is in priority is the state of health of your baby before the vaccination and the gentle regime after it.
Do not forget about the proper nutrition of the child after vaccination. The best option here is so light, low-fat food in the amount that is comfortable for the child to eat, more fruit (but not exotic!) And drink. Do not forget about the good mood, and about walking, but forget about visiting public places and staying with a vaccinated child in crowded, unventilated rooms. Allow the body to rest and develop antibodies to the toxoid vaccine. The child’s immunity after vaccination is weakened, he needs no infection and, consequently, overload.