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Back-to-school season is here, meaning it’s time for parents to make sure their kids are up to date on their vaccines.
Getting children all of the vaccines recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s immunization schedule is one of the most important things parents can do to protect their children’s health and that of classmates and the community. Most schools require children to be current on vaccinations before enrolling to protect the health of all students.
Today’s childhood vaccines protect against serious and potentially life-threatening diseases, including polio, measles, whooping cough (pertussis) and chickenpox.
“Thanks to vaccines, most of these diseases have become rare in the United States,” said Dr. Anne Schuchat, director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, CDC. “But many still exist here, and they can make children very sick, leading to many days of missed school, missed work for parents and even hospitalization and death.”
In 2012, more than 48,000 cases of whooping cough were reported in the United States. During this time, 20 deaths were reported; the majority of these deaths were in children younger than 3 months of age.
When children are not vaccinated, they are at increased risk of disease and can spread diseases to others in their classrooms and community, including babies who are too young to be fully vaccinated and people with weakened immune systems due to cancer and other health conditions.
School age children need vaccines. For example, kids who are 4 to 6 years old are due for boosters of four vaccines: diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis; chickenpox; measles, mumps, and rubella; and polio. Older children, such as pre-teens and teens, need: tetanus, diphtheria, and pertussis vaccine; human papillomavirus vaccine; and meningococcal conjugate virus vaccine. In addition, yearly flu vaccines are recommended for all children 6 months and older.
For details about immunizations, visit www.cdc.gov/vaccines/parents.
