Immunization
The Indian Association of Paediatrics (IAP) recommends the vaccination scheduled that is followed in India.
At birth- The baby is given
- BCG injection (for protection against tuberculosis)
- Oral polio drops (OPV for polio)
- Hepatitis B immunization
At six weeks – It is recommended that the baby be given shots of
- DTP (protects against diphtheria, whooping cough and tetanus)
- IPV (injectable polio vaccine) this protects against polio
- Booster for protection against hepatitis B infection
- HIB vaccine This protects the child from a type of meningitis
- Rotavirus vaccine To protect the child from a type of diarrhea
- PCV – this vaccine protects against pneumococcal disease that can cause serious infection of the blood, meningitis and ear infections
At ten weeks the baby should receive booster doses of
- DTP
- IPV
- HIB
- Rotavirus vaccine
- PCV
At fourteen weeks, the baby should ideally be immunized with booster doses of the following vaccines
- DTP
- IPV
- HIB
- Rotavirus vaccine
- PCV
At six months, the baby should receive booster doses of
- Oral polio vaccine (OPV)
- Hepatitis B vaccine
At nine months, it is recommended that the baby receive immunization with
- OPV
- MMR vaccine This protects against mumps, measles and rubella infections
Between nine to twelve months, the baby should be immunized with
- Typhoid vaccine this protects against typhoid infection.
- Once the baby is a year old, there is a need to protect the baby against hepatitis A infection, which is mainly a water borne infection that infects the liver.
At 15 months of age, the child should be immunized with
- MMR booster dose
- Varicella vaccine to protect against chicken pox
- PCV booster
Between 16 to 18 months of age, the child should ideally receive the following vaccines
- DTP booster
- IPV booster
- HIB booster
- Hepatitis A booster dose
At 2 years of age, the child should receive a booster of the typhoid vaccine.
Between 4 to 6 years, the child should receive booster doses of
- DTP
- OPV
- Varicella
- MMR
Between 10 and 12 years of age there is a need to receive booster doses of
- HPV vaccine for girls this protects against infection by human papilloma virus that can cause cancer of the genital tract in women.
- TD vaccine for protection against diphtheria and typhoid
Immunization is also recommended for adults
- Pregnant women need to be immunized against tetanus. This is achieved by giving two doses of TT vaccine a month apart at 4 and 5 months of pregnancy.
- Every person is advised to get immunized against tetanus by taking a booster dose every 10 years
- In addition, an annual influenza vaccine is recommended for people over 50 years of age, single dose of zoster vaccine for people over 60 years of age and a single dose of pneumococcal vaccine for people over 65 years of age.
- If a person works in an environment where there is risk of exposure to blood products or sexual contact with high risk people, like sex workers, then immunization against hepatitis B is recommended.
- Immunization against typhoid is recommended in case the person travels frequently or there is an outbreak in the community.
- Immunization against hepatitis A is recommended for people who are considered at risk, like I/V drug users or those with other liver related issues.
- In certain high risk areas, immunization against Japanese encephalitis and cholera is done too.
Sources
https://familydoctor.org/pneumococcal-conjugate-vaccine
https://www.webmd.com/children/vaccines/hib-h-influenzae-type-b-vaccine#1