Preventative Medicine - Immunization Schedules

Flashcards covering key vocabulary and concepts from a lecture on immunization schedules and vaccine types.

Immunization

The process of making a person resistant to a specific disease, usually by administering a vaccine.

Vaccination

A simple, safe, and effective way of protecting people against harmful diseases, before they come into contact with them.

Inactivated vaccines

Vaccines that use the killed version of the germ that causes a disease.

Live-attenuated vaccines

Vaccines that use a weakened form of the germ; create a strong and long-lasting immune response.

mRNA vaccines

Vaccines that make proteins in order to trigger an immune response; shorter manufacturing time than other vaccines.

Subunit, recombinant, polysaccharide, and conjugate vaccines

Vaccines containing only a specific antigen or other element of the germ; elicit a strong immune response with a low chance of adverse reaction.

Toxoid vaccines

Vaccines that use a toxin made by the germ that causes a disease; create immunity to the parts of the germ that cause a disease instead of the germ itself.

Viral vector vaccines

Vaccines that use a modified version of a different virus as a vector to deliver protection.

Routes of Administration - Oral

Examples: OPV, Rotarix.

Routes of Administration - Intradermal

Example: BCG.

Routes of Administration - Subcutaneous

Example: MMR/Yellow Fever.

Routes of Administration - Intramuscular

Examples: Pentavalent, IPV, DPT or DT Pediatric and Adult, MMR, Hepatitis B.

Minimum Interval Between Live Vaccines

A minimum interval of 4 weeks is essential between administration of 2 live vaccines.

Administration of Killed Antigens

Two or more killed antigens can be administered simultaneously or at any interval.

Common Side Effects of Vaccines

Pain, swelling, or redness where the shot was given; mild fever; chills; feeling tired; headache; muscle or joint aches.

Signs of Severe Allergic Reaction to a Vaccine

Difficulty breathing; swelling of the face or throat; dizziness; weakness; tachycardia; generalized rash.

Diphtheria Toxoid Adult Vaccine - Indications

Any wound or burn sustained > 6 hours before surgical treatment; any wound with significant devitalized tissue, puncture type, soil or manure, evidence of sepsis.

Yellow Fever - Indications

To protect populations living in endemic or epidemic areas; to protect travelers visiting these countries; to prevent international spread by minimizing the risk of importation of the virus by viremic travelers.