Autumn and winter is the season of high incidence of influenza. For babies with low immunity, it is better to prepare for influenza prevention. Vaccination of influenza vaccine is one of the effective ways to prevent influenza. What problems should babies pay attention to when vaccinating? When is the best time to vaccinate?
What are the types of influenza vaccines?
Influenza vaccine is one of the main measures to prevent and control influenza, which can effectively reduce the probability of influenza, reduce the symptoms of influenza, and prevent the occurrence of severe complications such as pneumonia, myocarditis and encephalitis. There are mainly three kinds of influenza vaccines: whole virus inactivated vaccine, split vaccine and subunit vaccine. The immunogenicity and side effects of these three vaccines are similar.
How effective is influenza vaccination?
About two weeks after vaccination, the body will produce antibodies. After exposure to the influenza virus, these antibodies will destroy the influenza virus, thus protecting you from the influenza virus. People who have been vaccinated against the flu are much less likely to get flu than those who have not. After vaccination, there is at least a 50% - 80% chance that you will not be infected with influenza. Even if you are infected with influenza, the symptoms will be lighter than those who have not been vaccinated.
What are the side effects of influenza vaccine?
Local injection of the vaccine will appear pain, sometimes swelling, other possible side effects are low fever, headache, but these symptoms usually disappear within 1 to 2 days. Many people will worry about the safety of the flu vaccine, but for most people, the benefits of the flu vaccine far outweigh its side effects.
Can influenza vaccine prevent common cold?
Some people think that the flu is just a "flu" and it doesn't matter. In fact, there is a big difference between influenza and the common cold.
Influenza is an acute respiratory infectious disease caused by influenza virus, while common cold may be caused by up to 200 different pathogens, including viruses and bacteria. More symptoms are stuffy nose, runny nose, sore throat and severe cough. Generally, there will be no serious complications and no pandemic. Therefore, influenza is a much more serious acute respiratory infectious disease than the common cold, so it needs special prevention.
Influenza vaccine is a preventive measure against a certain subtype of influenza virus, and its main function is to promote the body to produce antibodies against this type of virus. This specific antibody has no resistance to common bacteria and other influenza viruses. Therefore, it is incorrect and unscientific to say that children will not get a cold after being vaccinated with influenza.
When is the best time for influenza vaccination?
Because most of the influenza virus will have some variation every year, so in the high incidence season of influenza every year, vaccination is needed. Once there is a new influenza vaccine in that year, it is recommended to vaccinate as soon as possible, so as to produce antibodies as soon as possible and effectively protect health.
The season of high incidence of influenza is from November to march of the next year. Vaccination 1-2 months before the peak of influenza epidemic can play a more effective role in protection. In China, especially in the northern region, winter and spring are the epidemic seasons of influenza, so influenza vaccination is generally required in autumn (around October).
Does influenza vaccine need to be vaccinated every year?
After vaccination, influenza vaccine can rapidly produce protective antibodies in the human body, usually within two weeks. Protective antibodies can last for one year in the human body. However, the antibody level in the human body after vaccination will decrease with time, and the composition of the virus strains contained in the vaccine varies with the epidemic dominant strains, so it is necessary to vaccinate in the same year every year The flu vaccine. It can protect the virus strains with similar antigenicity to the vaccine strains and reduce the symptoms of the disease. Due to the decline of antibody level, the virus strains contained in the vaccine vary with the epidemic strains. The influenza vaccine of that year should be vaccinated every year to achieve the best immune effect and produce good immune effect.
Children should pay attention to keep the vaccination site clean after vaccination to prevent water. Within one day after vaccination, pay attention to observe children's physical signs. A few children will have slight discomfort, such as transient slight pain and swelling at the vaccination site, and a few children may have low fever. These are normal phenomena, which will disappear naturally after 24 hours. If the child has a persistent fever, local swelling and other phenomena, you need to take the child to the hospital.
How old can a baby be vaccinated against influenza?
CDC of the United States suggests that people over 6 months old can be vaccinated with influenza vaccine. Compared with adults, babies are more likely to be infected with influenza, and the symptoms are more serious than adults. Therefore, it is highly recommended that infants be vaccinated with influenza vaccine.
