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http://www.telegraphindia.com/1150601/jsp/knowhow/story_23145.jsp

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Your Health - Dr. Gita Mathai

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I receive many letters from patients distressed over infections of chickenpox, typhoid or jaundice. All these infections are preventable with timely immunisation. If only parents did not forget!

For the first two years of a child's life, forgetting the infants or their needs is difficult. Even their immunisations are a priority both in families and by the government and given automatically on time.

The BCG (Bacillus Calmette-Guérin) is used for the prevention of tuberculosis. It does protect against severe and lethal forms of tuberculosis like meningitis. It has a protective effect against leprosy. Hepatitis B vaccine prevents liver infection, which can be life-threatening. The vaccine is free. One dose is given at birth along with BCG. Repeat injections are given a month and then 4-6 months later. The vaccine prevents infection and the development of chronic liver disease like cirrhosis and cancer. This vaccine can be combined from the second dose onwards with HiB - the vaccine against the bacteria H. Infuenzae (this is not the flu vaccine). This protects the child from meningitis, throat and lung infections. Also combined with HiB is "triple" antigen (DPT). This protects against diphtheria, pertussis and tetanus.

Polio has been eradicated from our country (as per government statistics and WHO certification) since May 2014. This has been achieved through an aggressive free immunisation campaign with OPV (Oral Polio Vaccine) or IPV (Injectable Polio Vaccine). IPV is considered superior, but unlike OPV but is not yet free. Even if the doses are given on schedule, all children under the age of five years should attend mass immunisation campaigns.

Influenza (flu) vaccine has to be taken every year in October after the age of six months. Measles vaccine (also free) is given between the ages of 9-12 months.

At this point, immunisation schedules may start to fall by the wayside. The immunisations are no longer every month so parents do forget. Rotavirus causes severe diarrhoea. Breast-fed babies have some degree of immunity. The vaccine is given by mouth in three doses at two, four and six months of age. Varicella vaccine is given soon after the first birthday with a booster at the age of 10. MMR (measles, mumps and rubella) has to be given at 15 months of age with a booster at 4-5 years.

Typhoid is endemic in India. The vaccine is inexpensive and efficient. It is given after the age of two years with a booster every three years. Now even 97 per cent of cervical cancers can be prevented if HPV (Human Papillomavirus) injections are given between the ages of 9-11.

Dr Gita Mathai is a paediatrician with a family practice at Vellore. Questions on health issues may be emailed to her at yourhealthgm@yahoo.co.in