Typhoid is an endemic disease which can roughly affect any age group. However, more than 10 percent of these cases are found in infants of less than a year and the school going children and adolescents are most likely to be affected by this disease. Studies suggest that India registers over 5 million cases of typhoid every year which furthers justifies the need of administering the typhoid vaccine. New typhoid vaccination is given as a single dose injection after 2 years of age and then in every 3 years a booster is given. For a child over 6 years, we have an oral capsule as well, which is given every alternate day for 3 doses. For a complete vaccination, this oral typhoid vaccination needs to be taken in every 3 years.
Q. Why do we need a typhoid vaccination?
A. Typhoid vaccination is given to protect against the typhoid fever or enteric fever.
Q. What are the types of typhoid vaccin
A. There are two different types of typhoid vaccines namely Vi antigen and Oral ty21a vaccine.Vi vaccine is an inactivated vaccine which is given as an injection while the Oral ty21a vaccine is an oral live vaccine.
Q. How are the typhoid vaccines available?
- Vi Antigen Vaccine: Single dose ready to use vaccine vials containing 0.5 ml of vaccine.
- Multi-dose bulbs containing 4-10 doses (2-5 ml), depending on brand.
- Some brands are available as 0.5 ml containing mono-dose prefilled.
- Syringes.
- ty21a oral vaccine:It comes in a set of 3 capsules.
Q. How are the typhoid vaccines administered?
A. Vi antigen vaccine: It is given as an injection as a single dose of 0.5 ml intramuscularly on arms or thigh.
Oral ty21a vaccine: It is a set of 3 capsules which should be taken on alternate days. The capsules are not meant to be chewed or opened. They should be swallowed completely. In some cases, there can be a set of 4 capsules meant to be consumed on alternate days. The liquid form of this vaccine is available in sachet form. Considering its effectiveness, the liquid form is also preferred in some cases. However, the liquid form of the typhoid vaccination is yet to be introduced in Indian market.
Q. When should the typhoid vaccine be administered?
A. It is advisable to get the children gets vaccinated at early ages itself to avoid the complications at later stages. Vi antigen vaccine: It is recommended for children above 2 years of age. Oral ty21a vaccine: It is recommended for children of 4-6 years.
Q. For how long does the typhoid vaccination protects a child?
A. Following a single dose of Vi vaccine or 3 doses of oral ty21a vaccine, the protective efficacy spans 2-3 years. With a set of 4 capsules of oral ty21a vaccine, protection lasts for around 3-5 years. It is advisable to vaccine every 3 years.
Q. What are the side effects of the typhoid vaccines?
A. Vi antigen vaccine: Side effects are very mild and are experienced in less than 10 percent of the cases. Basic side effects of the typhoid vaccine will create pain, swelling, redness, tenderness which do not persist more than a day and are easily countered with a paracetamol tablet. Rarely do we witness the systemic side effects of fever which again do not last more than a day and are easily controlled by a paracetamol.
Oral ty21a vaccine: A few side-effects are mild GI discomfort like pain in abdomen, vomiting, diarrhea & mild fever. These side effects are mild, very rare and can be controlled easily.
Q. Who should be vaccinated with the typhoid vaccine?
A. Typhoid Vaccine should be administered to all the food handlers, person traveling to the endemic areas, persons who eat outside open food quite often. It should also be given to the people who have suffered from typhoid since this disease is known to occur again. In these cases, the typhoid vaccination is given after 4 weeks of complete recovery from typhoid fever.
Q. What are the contraindications for typhoid vaccine?
A. Since oral ty21a is a live typhoid vaccine it should not be given to the individuals with a weakened immune system. Children who shows a sever reaction, such as allergic reaction, to the first dose should not receive any additional or booster doses. Antibiotics which act against the typhoid should not be given 5 days before, during and after typhoid vaccination, in case of oral ty21a vaccine.
Q. Can typhoid vaccination be given along with other vaccine?
A. Yes, It is safe to give the typhoid vaccine along with other vaccine using separate syringe and separate site.
For Typhoid Vaccination, Hyderabad - India Please Contact : +91-9014243939, +91-9347480077.
No comments:
Post a Comment