If we look at the history of medicine, the most important development in reducing deaths due to infectious diseases is providing clean drinking water to humanity, while vaccines, not antibiotics, come in second place, contrary to your guess. The World Health Organization reports that the lives of 3 million children are saved every year thanks to vaccinations. Vaccinated children are not only protected from diseases, but they also protect the unvaccinated children around them, as they will not carry the disease. Conversely, unvaccinated children will become carriers of diseases and pose a risk to public health.
How do vaccines work?
The immune system keeps past diseases in memory. It allows the body to respond faster and more effectively when faced with the same factor again. Vaccination, that is, immunization, is the creation of memory cells by giving weakened disease agents to the body, usually by injection. Memory cells recognize the agent they encounter and enable the rapid production of many antibodies. As a result of this rapid response, the bacteria or virus is destroyed before it can multiply enough to cause disease. Vaccines are obtained by inactivating disease-causing microorganisms or toxins produced by microorganisms by chemical means or heat. In childhood, it is administered subcutaneously, intramuscularly or orally within the framework of a schedule determined by the Ministry of Health.
Additional vaccines that may be recommended outside the routine vaccination schedule
Rotavirus vaccine: from the 2nd or 3rd month. in 2 or 3 doses from the age of 9
HPV (Human papilloma vaccine): in 3 doses from the age of 9
Influenza (Flu) vaccine: every year from the 6th month
Meningococcal vaccine (MCV4): in 1 or 2 doses starting from 9 months
Hepatitis B Vaccine: Hepatitis B is transmitted from person to person through blood and body fluids. It is a viral infection that can be transmitted and mainly affects the liver. There is a possibility of transmitting the disease to the baby who comes into contact with the blood and body fluids of the mother who is a hepatitis B carrier during birth. The virus can survive and be transmitted for a long time outside the body The high severity of the disease, the chronicity of the disease and the lack of treatment increase the value of preventive measures. Hepatitis B vaccine is an inactive (dead) vaccine. It is administered in 3 doses, starting from the neonatal period. Side effects after vaccination are rarely observed. It provides 90-95% protection.
BCG (Basillus Calmette-Guerin) Vaccine: Tuberculosis is a bacterial disease whose causative agent has been known and treated for more than 50 years. The agent is found in large amounts in the breath of the sick person and remains suspended in the air for days, being dispersed by speaking, coughing and sneezing. For this reason, it still remains one of the most contagious diseases today. BCG vaccine is a live vaccine administered under the skin in the upper left arm. Approximately 4 weeks after the vaccination, a reaction in the form of a small wound occurs at the vaccination site and heals spontaneously, leaving a scar within 1-2 months.
DaBT (Diphtheria, acellular Pertussis, Tetanus) -IPA (Inactive Polio) -Hib (Hemophilus influenza type B) Vaccine: It is a combined five-valent mixed vaccine produced especially for use together in the same syringe. . It provides a high level of protection against diphtheria, whooping cough, tetanus, polio and meningitis, which can be serious in children. Swelling, redness and mild fever may occur at the vaccination site after vaccination.
KPA (Conjugated Pneumococcal Vaccine): It causes diseases such as pneumonia, bacterial transfer to the blood (bacteremia) and meningitis in children. It provides protection against pneumococcal microbes. No serious side effects are observed after vaccination.
KKK (Measles, Rubella, Mumps) Vaccine: It is a combined, live vaccine administered under the skin that provides immunity against three diseases. It provides 95-98% protection. The most common side effect after vaccination is fever, which subsides within 24-48 hours.
Hepatitis A Vaccine: Hepatitis A is spread through the feces of sick people and can be easily transmitted by contact with water and food. It is a viral disease that affects the liver. Before October 2012, when it was added to the routine vaccination schedule, 80-85% of children under the age of 15 had this disease. Vaccination provides 100% immunity and the vaccine has no serious side effects.
Chickenpox:Chickenpox, which is transmitted from person to person through direct contact or through the air, is one of the most contagious diseases known. Even breathing the same room air as a sick child for a short time is enough to transmit the disease. It was added to the routine vaccination schedule in December 2012. Since it is a live vaccine, a single dose provides sufficient protection. Apart from these vaccines, additional vaccines that have not yet been included in the routine vaccination calendar of the Ministry of Health but are recommended to children around the world by the pediatric infectious diseases authorities can be administered under the supervision of a pediatrician.
Rotavirus vaccine: Rotavirus is a viral infection that is usually seen in infants and children and causes vomiting, fever and severe diarrhea that causes dehydration. It is one of the leading causes of hospitalization in children under 5 years of age. It can be easily transmitted through water and food that come into contact with the feces of sick children. The first dose of rotavirus vaccine should be given orally when the child is 6-12 weeks old and completed in 2 or 3 doses at 4-week intervals.
HPV (Human Papilloma Virus) Vaccine: HPV is a sexually transmitted, It is a virus that can cause genital warts and cervical cancer in women. Vaccinating girls with HPV vaccine for 3 doses, starting from the age of 9, before active sexual life begins, provides protection against 4 types of viruses that cause cancer.
Influenza (Flu) Vaccine: Influenza in young children, It is a very common disease that can be serious in the elderly and people with chronic diseases. From time to time, major influenza epidemics occur internationally. Since the virus that causes flu (influenza) changes its genetic structure every year, permanent immunity cannot be acquired against the disease. Therefore, children should be vaccinated every year in one of the most appropriate months of September, October and November.
Meningococcal vaccine (MCV4): Meningococcal meningitis (infection of brain tissue and membranes). Inflammation) is a disease that starts with a skin rash in children and can cause death within hours, and for which protection is very important since it is transmitted through the respiratory tract. An increase in its incidence has been observed in recent years.
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