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Vaccinations and Immunizations
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Vaccinations and Immunizations
Kids don’t love getting shots at their doctor visits, but vaccinations and immunizations save lives, prevent disease, and keep children healthy as they grow. At Wellness Pediatrics, Dr. Suhad Yaldo and her team follow the recommended vaccination schedule of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).
Are Vaccination and Immunization the Same Thing?
Vaccination is the act of getting a vaccine to help your child develop immunity against a specific disease or infection. Immunization is the process of becoming immune to a particular disease or infection, usually through vaccination. Inoculation is often used interchangeably for vaccination and immunization. In short, children achieve immunity through vaccination.
What Vaccinations Does My Child Need?
Your child will not receive vaccinations at every visit to the pediatrician, but it may feel that way at the start as they will receive the bulk of their shots in the early months and years of their life. Once they reach school age, the frequency of vaccinations goes down, but continue to be given at annual well-child visits as recommended by the AAP.
Vaccinations protect children from a host of conditions and illnesses, including:
- Chicken pox
- Diphtheria
- Hepatitis B
- HPV
- Measles
- Meningitis
- Mumps
- Pneumonia
- Polio
- Rotavirus
- Tetanus
- Whooping cough
Some vaccinations are recommended annually, such as the flu and COVID vaccines.
Why Does My Child Need Vaccinations and Immunizations?
Vaccinations are an essential, preventive healthcare service that help a child build lifelong immunity against certain diseases while other shots protect them from infection and illness. Given at intervals from infancy to young adulthood, vaccinations reduce the risk of contracting potentially deadly diseases. Vaccinations are also required to remain in compliance with schools, daycares, and other organizations.
How Do Vaccines Work?
Vaccinations are made of weak or inactive germs that are responsible for causing certain diseases. When inoculated with these particles, a child’s immune system begins to build antibodies against the germs and the antibodies remain in their system to protect them from getting sick should they be exposed to the disease at some point in their life.
Some vaccines are delivered in multiple doses over several years to ensure that the body is adequately protected from a particular virus or disease.
Will My Child Experience Side Effects from Vaccinations?
Just like any medication, a vaccination can potentially cause a child to experience mild side effects like fever or soreness at the injection site. While this concerns some parents, know that the health complications that could arise for your child if they are not inoculated against preventable diseases are much worse, and potentially fatal, compared to brief and mild discomfort.
Your pediatrician is aware that some children may not be able to tolerate certain vaccinations because of allergies, health conditions, or other medical reasons. We address these circumstances on a case-by-case basis and will guide you with advice to keep your child safe if they cannot be immunized against certain diseases.
Get Vaccinations from Pediatrician Near Me in Birmingham, MI
Disease prevention has always been important, but in this COVID-19 world we have all witnessed how quickly and alarmingly an illness can spread and how vital vaccinations are to protect people against the worst of a disease.
Our goal at Wellness Pediatric is to take the best possible care of your children, from infancy to young adulthood. If you have any concerns or questions about vaccinations and immunizations, contact us to get the answers you’re seeking.
We look forward to welcoming your family to our practice in Birmingham, Michigan and to arming your child with the tools they need to live a healthy, thriving, happy life.