FREEHOLD – The Monmouth County Health Department is reminding parents to make immunizations a part of their child’s routine health care.
Vaccines are available to protect against measles, mumps, rubella, influenza, hepatitis B, polio, diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, haemophilus, influenza type B, (previously a leading cause of bacterial meningitis among children under 5 years of age), chicken pox and pneumococcal disease. Before a vaccine was available, pneumococcal infection caused more than 700 cases of meningitis, 13,000 blood infections and 5,000 ear infections each year, according to a press release from the county.
Freeholder Robert D. Clifton, liaison to the health department, urged parents to make sure their children are immunized against these potentially fatal diseases.
“Immunizations are provided free in Monmouth County to children who do not have health insurance,” he said. “Parents are encouraged to use this service and to call the health department if they have any questions regarding immunizations or any health concerns.”
The recommended childhood and adolescent immunization schedule is periodically reviewed to ensure that vaccines are safe and up to date with recommendations. Several changes have been made to the 2006 immunization schedule.
Influenza vaccine is now recommended for children 6 months or older with certain risk factors. In addition, healthy children ages 6 to 23 months and close contacts of healthy children ages newborn to 5 months are recommended to receive influenza vaccine. Children in this age group are at an increased risk for influenza related hospitalizations, according to the press release.
Meningococcal vaccine, which provides protection from meningococcal disease, a bacterial infection that can cause severe swelling of the brain and spinal cord, or a serious blood infection, should be administered to all children at 11 or 12 years of age as well as to unvaccinated adolescents at high school entry. Hepatitis A vaccine is now universally recommended for all children at 1 year of age.
“Parents may not think that diseases are a threat today because you do not see or hear much about them, but they are still around,” said Michael A. Meddis, assistant public health coordinator for the Monmouth County Health Department.
For example, pertussis, an acute infectious cough illness with potentially severe complications in infants less than 12 months, remains endemic in the United States despite routine childhood pertussis vaccination for more than 50 years.
“The primary reason for continued circulation of pertussis is that immunity to pertussis wanes approximately five to 10 years after completion of the childhood pertussis vaccination, leaving adolescents and adults susceptible,” Meddis said.
To reduce pertussis in adolescents, a new vaccine preparation approved by FDA is now recommended for children 11 and 12 years old. For more specific details on the recommended childhood and adolescent immunization schedule for 2006, visit the Internet Web site www.immunize.org.
The Monmouth County Health Department provides free immunizations for children who do not have health insurance. To make an appointment or obtain more information, call (732) 294-5458.