The article is devoted to the issue of vaccinations, which is so important now and of concern to many. So what is vaccination? Is it a forced measure that guarantees protection against terrible diseases, or is it a “universal evil” that brings side effects and harm to he alth? We will talk about the history of vaccination, its main schemes and myths associated with the immunization process.
What is vaccination
Vaccination is a method of preventive measures that protects a 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 vaccinations help with this? A person is injected with antigenic material (simply speaking, a weakened version of a virus / pathogenic bacterium or its component), the naming system rushes to fight the “alien”. What is going to happen? Immunity kills the "spy" and "remembers" him. That is, antibodies appear that will "sleep" until repeatedhit of a virus/microbe/their fragments. 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 to vaccinate, the most common are injections (shots), oral (drops). There are also so-called contact vaccinations, when, for example, children are brought to a child with chickenpox (popularly known as chickenpox) so that they become infected and also get sick. This is done because the varicella-zoster virus is much easier and without consequences is tolerated in childhood compared to adolescents and adults. The same disease can be very dangerous during pregnancy for both mother and child, so getting sick at an early age means protecting yourself at an older age.
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, doctors in China were the first to use the so-called inoculation - inoculation with liquid from smallpox vesicles in mild cases. But such vaccination had both pluses and minuses. 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 speculation that milkmaids infected with cowpox from animals (not a dangeroushuman disease) are not capable of contracting smallpox. The pharmacist Jenner was the first to confirm this. His observations confirmed the hypothesis, and in 1798 he instilled cowpox in a boy, and after a while - natural. 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 capacity nor the assets to prove and substantiate his discovery scientifically. This was done a hundred years later by the world-famous French microbiologist Louis Pasteur. With the imperfect equipment of the time, he was able to weaken pathogens and purposefully inoculate the sick 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 suggested the name of this method of protection against diseases - "vaccination", from the Latin word vaccus - a cow.
Vaccination of children. Patterns
In this section, we will look at 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), vaccination against hepatitis is done. In the first week of a child's life, it is necessary to inoculate against tuberculosis (BCG). When the baby matures for one month, revaccination (re-vaccination) against hepatitis is carried out. After two months, when the child is three months old, he is vaccinated with a complex vaccination against such dangerous diseases as diphtheria, whooping cough and tetanus. Vaccinationagainst polio can be separately in drops, or in the same injection by injection.
Next, the baby is waiting for revaccination at four and six months.
When the child celebrates his first birthday, he will be vaccinated against mumps (popularly mumps), measles and rubella. These are quite dangerous infections, do not take them lightly. Measles gives very strong 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 it. The vaccination schedule involves repeating vaccinations according to a schedule compiled by pediatricians and tested for decades.
In a year and a half, revaccination against the same diseases is carried out. In a year and eight months - again revaccination, and the baby can rest from vaccinations up to six years.
Preparing for vaccination
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 necessary? The answer is unambiguous - it is necessary. What is included? Firstly, this is observation of the baby for about a week before vaccination. You need to carefully examine the child for allergies, rashes, check if he has symptoms of the flu or other acute respiratory viral infections. You can start taking temperature two or three days before vaccination. It is also advisable to take general blood and urine tests so that until the moment of vaccinationthey were ready. Why is this being done? Then, to make sure that the child is he althy and does not have a latent or indolent disease.
Even mandatory vaccination is not carried out if the child is unwell, as this overloads the baby's immunity, and not only will it not allow the body to fully fight the toxoid, but it will also increase the course of the existing disease.
Before the vaccination itself, the child must be examined by a pediatrician.
What you need to know about the post-vaccination period
The post-vaccination period is no less important than the examination before vaccination. The key to successfully formulated immunity is both the absence of disease before vaccination, and not overloaded immunity after.
You should avoid visiting public places with a newly vaccinated child. Be sure to make sure that the baby does not freeze, does not get his feet wet. If for some time after visiting the hospital he complains of a lack of appetite, do not force him to eat. The body is busy fighting the toxoid (or fragment) of the pathogen, distraction to an overloaded stomach is useless.
It is worth knowing that after vaccination, small children can be moody for some time, badly and little, or, conversely, sleep for a long time. A slight increase in temperature after vaccination is also normal. After complex vaccinations (DTP), some pediatricians advise 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 tochild in the post-vaccination period. The main thing is to distinguish between understanding the mild predictable consequences of vaccination with the development of serious side effects or anaphylactic shock. Some doctors advise after vaccination to take a walk for about an hour near the clinic, so that if the child's condition worsens, they can be delivered to doctors capable of providing emergency assistance as soon as possible.
Vaccination against polio
Polio is a very dangerous disease that is practically untreatable. If a person who has been ill with it survives, then, most likely, he will remain disabled for life. The consequences of the disease are disorders in the nervous system and the musculoskeletal system.
Vaccination is the only way to protect against disease.
The disease is caused by the 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 pathogen began at the end of the 19th century, and by the middle of the 20th, when the disease reached epidemic proportions in America and Europe, the introduction of mandatory vaccination became a salvation from the disease and the step that helped defeat the disease. The number of cases dropped from tens of thousands to several hundred in the Soviet Union.
Vaccination against polio is now carried out according to the scheme that we described above. One has only to say that there are two types of vaccine: oral (OPV, live) andinactivated ("killed"), in the form of an injection, - IPV. The optimal vaccination schedule is considered to be vaccination the first two times with an inactivated vaccine plus two times of OPV.
Do not forget that we are talking about a very dangerous disease that could only be stopped thanks to the introduction of vaccinations and mandatory vaccination.
Influenza vaccination
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. 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 school, infecting others along the way. But this does not mean that the disease is so safe. According to the World He alth Organization, every year in the world the flu takes from a quarter to a half million lives. During the years of rampant especially dangerous strains, this figure can reach a million or more.
Vaccinating against the flu will not prevent you from getting new strains, but it will protect you from getting infected with known ones. This disease can be especially dangerous for people with weakened immune systems, HIV, autoimmune diseases, bronchial asthma, cardiovascular disorders and children, in whom the flu often turns into complications in the form of bronchitis and pneumonia, as well as infants, women during pregnancy and people old age, which are most oftendie from the consequences of the disease. Vaccination in this case will save at least part of the modifications of the virus, and the rest of its variations will help to quickly destroy the immune system.
Like the polio vaccine, the flu shot was developed in the 19th century and 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. Incidents like this have led to the myth that vaccination is almost murder in the media.
First, let's find out who should never be vaccinated. There are both absolute and temporary contraindications to vaccinations (for example, a disease currently makes vaccination contraindicated, but you can vaccinate after recovery).
The following contraindications are permanent:
- Severe reaction to a certain vaccine before. Especially complicated by angioedema and/or temperature up to 40.
- Immunodeficiency states. This group includes people with HIV, as well as those who are / have undergone immunosuppressive therapy (take drugs that suppress the immune system).
Temporary contraindications to vaccination include the presence and detection of a latent or overt infection in a child that is currently occurring in an acute or chronic form. Also forinfants before the first DTP shows a visit to a neurologist. If a baby has neurological disorders, it is worth vaccinating him only after they stop / cure.
Vaccination of an adult, in principle, has the same contraindications as that of a child. In adulthood, a person needs to be vaccinated against diphtheria every ten years of life. Before going to the doctor, you should take your temperature and, ideally, take blood and urine tests.
Should I give my child antihistamines before vaccination?
Some pediatricians advise giving an anti-allergic drug to the baby before vaccination, while others are against it with all their might. But what about mom?
The famous doctor Yevgeny 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 anti-allergenic drugs needed before vaccination? This may be recommended when a baby has had a local reaction to a vaccine but has not developed into a serious or severe reaction.
Are vaccinations needed?
You got the answer to this question above if you carefully read the article. It is imperative to vaccinate a child, but do it with a serious approach and not carelessly. Vaccinations have saved the lives and he alth of millions of children. At the same time, there are 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 follow the child's condition, andvaccination to an unhe althy baby, this can lead to unpredictable consequences. This happens because the body is already fighting the disease. And even if this is a banal ARVI, the assets of immunity have already been thrown into its elimination, the immune system may not be able to defeat the new “enemy”. Therefore, be sure to monitor the child's condition both before and after vaccination.
Vaccination is about protecting, not harming, and doctors cannot fight diseases without adequate parental help.
Vaccination myths
There are many myths about vaccination of children that can intimidate the relatives of the baby and put them at the crossroads of “vaccinate - do not vaccinate.”
So, for example, the British doctor Wakefield in the last century wrote a paper that said that the measles/mumps/rubella vaccine leads to autism. His theory, completely contrary to science, existed for quite a long time until it was criticized and refuted, since autism syndrome, although not fully understood, its connection with vaccination has not been proven either.
Recently, cases of serious side effects after vaccination have become more frequent, which, in turn, has led to many refusals of vaccinations. A current of “anti-vaccination moms” has appeared who widely advertise their position in social networks and real communication. The trouble is that these mothers are not familiar with both the history of vaccination and the history of many epidemics that were only stopped thanks to vaccinations.
Conclusions
To vaccinate or not, now the child's parents have the right to decide. Do not forget also that not all children can be vaccinated. But if your child is he althy, you should 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 is generally found almost everywhere, and the consequences of infection with it are very, very deplorable. And even if the vaccine does not provide 100% protection (and what can give it now?), But it gives the child's body a chance to overcome the disease and get out of this battle with minimal losses. Ignore the myths, speculation and rumors, the only thing that is a priority is the he alth of your baby before the vaccination and a sparing regimen after it.
Do not forget about the proper nutrition of the child after vaccination. The best option here is light, low-fat food in the amount that is comfortable for the child to eat, more fruits (but not exotic ones!) And drinks. Do not forget about a good mood, and about walking, but forget about visiting public places and staying with a vaccinated child in crowded unventilated areas. Let the body rest and develop antibodies to the vaccine toxoid. The immunity of the child after vaccination is weakened, he does not need infections and, accordingly, overload.
