Vaccines are not just for children.  Many vaccines you may have received as a child may no longer prevent disease today. Several of these childhood vaccines require booster shots. Vaccines are responsible for the control of many infectious diseases that were once common in this country, including polio, measles, diphtheria, pertussis (whooping cough), rubella (German measles), mumps, and tetanus.

While the US currently has record, or near record, low cases of vaccine-preventable diseases, the viruses and bacteria that cause them still exist. Even diseases that have been eliminated in this country, such as polio, are only a plane ride away. Vaccination also makes good economic sense. Vaccine-preventable diseases have a costly impact, resulting in doctor's visits, hospitalizations, and premature deaths. With this being said, the following six vaccines, should be on every adults list for consideration.

1. Influenza (Flu)

The single best way to protect against the flu, is to get vaccinated each year. The ability of flu vaccine to protect a person depends on the age and health status of the person getting the vaccine, and the similarity or "match" between the virus strains in the vaccine and those in circulation. Testing has shown that both the flu shot and the nasal-spray vaccine are effective at preventing the flu.

• The "flu shot"- an inactivated vaccine (containing killed virus) that is given with a needle, usually in the arm. The flu shot is approved for use in people older than 6 months, including healthy people and people with chronic medical conditions.

• The nasal-spray flu vaccine - a vaccine made with live, weakened flu viruses that do not cause the flu (sometimes called LAIV for "live attenuated influenza vaccine" or FluMist®). LAIV (FluMist®) is approved for use in healthy* people 2-49 years of age who are not pregnant.

Each vaccine contains three influenza viruses-one A (H3N2) virus, one A (H1N1) virus, and one B virus. The viruses in the vaccine change each year based on international surveillance and scientists' estimations about which types and strains of viruses will circulate in a given year.

It is recommended that certain people should get vaccinated each year. They are either people who are at high risk of having serious flu complications or people who live with or care for those at high risk for serious complications. People who should get vaccinated each year are:

1. Children aged 6 months up to their 19th birthday
2. Pregnant women
3. People 50 years of age and older
4. People of any age with certain chronic medical conditions
5. People who live in nursing homes and other long-term care facilities
6. People who live with or care for those at high risk for complications from flu, including: .   Health care workers, Household contacts of persons at high risk for complications from the flu, Household contacts and out of home caregivers of children less than 6 months of age (these children are too young to be vaccinated)

Yearly flu vaccination should begin in September or as soon as vaccine is available and continue throughout the influenza season, into December, January, and beyond. This is because the timing and duration of influenza seasons vary. While influenza outbreaks can happen as early as October, most of the time influenza activity peaks in January or later. 

There are some people who should not be vaccinated without first consulting a physician. These include

• People who have a severe allergy to chicken eggs.
• People who have had a severe reaction to an influenza vaccination.
• People who developed Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS) within 6 weeks of getting an influenza vaccine.
• Children less than 6 months of age (influenza vaccine is not approved for this age group), and
• People who have a moderate-to-severe illness with a fever (they should wait until they recover to get vaccinated).
  

2. Chicken Pox

Chickenpox is caused by a virus called varicella zoster. People who get the virus often develop a rash of spots that look like blisters all over their bodies. The blisters are small and sit on an area of red skin that can be anywhere from the size of a pencil eraser to the size of a dime. Chicken pox is usually something you associated with contagious little children in the playground. Adults can get it, too. In fact,chickenpox  is generally more severe in adults than in children.

The vaccine: Varivax

Some people should not get the chickenpox vaccine or should possibly wait.

• People should not get chickenpox vaccine if they have ever had a life-threatening allergic reaction to gelatin, the antibiotic neomycin, or a previous dose of chickenpox vaccine.
• People who are moderately or severely ill at the time the shot is scheduled should usually wait until they recover before getting chickenpox vaccine.
• Pregnant women should wait to get chickenpox vaccine until after they have given birth. Women should not get pregnant for 1 month after getting chickenpox vaccine.
• Some people should check with their doctor about whether they should get chickenpox vaccine, including anyone who:
  • Has HIV/AIDS or another disease that affects the immune system
  • Is being treated with drugs that affect the immune system, such as steroids, for 2 weeks or longer
  • Has any kind of cancer
  • Is taking cancer treatment with x-rays or drugs
  • People who recently had a transfusion or were given other blood products should ask their doctor when they may get chickenpox vaccine.
    

3. Shingles (herpes zoster)

Herpes zoster (or simply zoster), commonly known as shingles, is a viral disease characterised by a painful skin rash with blisters in a limited area on one side of the body, often in a stripe. The initial infection with varicella zoster virus (VZV) causes the acute (short-lived) illness chickenpox, and generally occurs in children and young people. Once an episode of chickenpox has resolved, the virus is not eliminated from the body but can go on to cause shingles—an illness with very different symptoms—often many years after the initial infection.

Varicella zoster virus can become latent in the nerve cell bodies and less frequently in non-neuronal satellite cells of dorsal root, cranial nerve or autonomic ganglion,] without causing any symptoms. In an immunocompromised individual, perhaps years or decades after a chickenpox infection, the virus may break out of nerve cell bodies and travel down nerve axons to cause viral infection of the skin in the region of the nerve. The virus may spread from one or more ganglia along nerves of an affected segment and infect the corresponding dermatome (an area of skin supplied by one spinal nerve) causing a painful rash. Although the rash usually heals within two to four weeks, some sufferers experience residual nerve pain for months or years, a condition called postherpetic neuralgia. IThe risk for this disease increases as immunity drops. It also increases with age, from 1.2 to 3.4 cases per 1,000 healthy individuals, increasing to 3.9–11.8 per year per 1,000 individuals among those older than 65 years.

Vaccine: Zostavax. The Zostavax vaccine is specially formulated for adults who want to protect themselves from the shingles.

• HIV AIDS or another disease that affects the immune system,
• treatment with drugs that affect the immune system, such as steroids,
• cancer treatment such as radiation or chemotherapy,
• a history of cancer affecting the bone marrow or lymphatic system, such as leukemia or lymphoma,
• has active, untreated tuberculosis,
• is pregnant, or might be pregnant. Women should not become pregnant until at least three months after getting shingles vaccine.

Someone with a minor illness, such as a cold, may be vaccinated. But anyone who is moderately or severely ill should usually wait until they recover before getting the vaccine. This includes anyone with a temperature of 101 point 3 degrees Fahrenheit or higher.

4. Tetanus, Diptheria and Pertussis

Many adults have not had a tetanus booster shot in many years. Failure to get the booster shot leaves you unprotected against the bacteria. Adults should be given a routine booster dose of Td every 10 years. Adults without documentation of ever receiving the basic series of tetanus and diphtheria toxoids should first receive a primary series of three doses, properly spaced. A single dose of Tdap is recommended for persons age 11 years and older in place of one of the Td doses, preferably the first one.     

Vaccine: Tdap (combined tetanus, diptheria, and pertussis).

Tdap protects against teanus, diptheria and pertussis, aka whooping cough. These diseases are highly contagious and can be deadly. For instance,whooping cough, an infection of the respiratory system caused by the bacterium Bordetella pertussis (or B. pertussis).killed 5,000 to 10,000 people in the United States each year, before the vaccine was introduced. Although the pertussis vaccine has reduced the annual number of deaths to less than 30, the number of cases has started to rise. By 2004, the number of whooping cough cases spiked past 25,000, the highest level it's been since the 1950s.

For these reasons it is important to remain vaccinated for these highly contagious and deadly diseases. The Tdap vaccine, however, is not for everyone.

• Anyone who has had a life-threatening allergic reaction after a dose of DTP, DTaP, DT, or Td vaccine should not get TDAP.
• Anyone who has a severe allergy to any component of the vaccine should not get Tdap. Tell your health-care provider if the person getting the vaccine has any known severe allergies.
• Talk with a doctor if the person getting the vaccine has a severe allergy to latex. Some Tdap vaccines should not be given to people with a severe latex allergy.
• Anyone who went into a coma or had a long seizure within 7 days after a dose of DTP or DTaP should not get Tdap, unless a cause other than the vaccine was found.

Talk to your doctor if the person getting the vaccine:

• has epilepsy or another nervous system problem,
• had severe swelling or severe pain after a previous dose of any vaccine containing tetanus, diphtheria or pertussis,
• has had Guillain Barré Syndrome (GBS).

Anyone who has a moderate or severe illness on the day the shot is scheduled should usually wait until they recover before getting the vaccine. Those with a mild illness or low fever can usually be vaccinated. 

5. Human Papillomavirus (HPV)

Human Papillomavirus (HPV) is a common virus. There are over 100 types. 37 types are known to be transmitted through sexual contact. Of the 37 types, some can cause cervical cancer in women and can also cause other kinds of cancer in both men and women. Most people who contract the virus will not develop cervical cancer; however, each year between 250,000 and 1 million American women are diagnosed with cervical dysplasia, which is caused by HPV and is a potential  Most of the time HPV has no symptoms so people do not know they have it.  According to the Journal of the American Medical Association and the American Social Health Association, by the age of 50 more than 80% of American women will have contracted at least one strain of HPV.

The vaccine:Two HPV vaccines are currently on the market: Gardasil and Cervarix. The HPV vaccine works by preventing the most common types of HPV that cause cervical cancer and genital warts. It is given as a 3-dose vaccine.

• Anyone who has ever had a life-threatening allergic reaction to yeast, to any other component of HPV vaccine, or to a previous dose of HPV. vaccine should not get the vaccine. Tell your doctor if the person getting the vaccine has any severe allergies.
  
• Pregnant women should not get the vaccine. The vaccine appears to be safe for both the mother and the unborn baby, but it is still being studied.
  
• People who are mildly ill when the shot is scheduled can still get HPV vaccine. People with moderate or severe illnesses should wait until they recover.

5. Measles, Mumps and Rubella

Measles, mumps and rubella (aka german measles) are highly contagious diseases that can be spread through respiration (contact with fluids from an infected person's nose and mouth, either directly or through aerosol transmission, such as sneezing or coughing).

Vaccine: Measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) booster. There is a special MMR booster formulated just for adults who want to protect themselves from the measles, mumps or rubella virus. One shot for all three vaccines.

• People should not get MMR vaccine who have ever had a life-threatening allergic reaction to gelatin, the antibiotic neomycin, or to a previous dose of MMR vaccine.
• People who are moderately or severely ill at the time the shot is scheduled should usually wait until they recover before getting MMR vaccine.
• Pregnant women should wait to get MMR vaccine until after they have given birth. Women should avoid getting pregnant for 4 weeks after getting MMR vaccine.
• Some people should check with their doctor about whether they should get MMR vaccine, including anyone who:
  • Has HIV/AIDS, or another disease that affects the immune system
  • Is being treated with drugs that affect the immune system, such as steroids, for 2 weeks or longer.
  • Has any kind of cancer
  • Is taking cancer treatment with x-rays or drugs
  • Has ever had a low platelet count (a blood disorder)
• People who recently had a transfusion or were given other blood products should ask their doctor when they may get MMR vaccine
  

Botton Line on Vaccinations

If you have any questions as to whether you should get one of these vaccines, or if you blieve you may need one of these vaccines you should consult your doctor, or you can get a real time consultation from a licensed physcian of your choice by clicking here.