UW News

September 14, 2011

Why adults need immunizations

UW Health Sciences/UW Medicine

Take the CDC Vaccine Quiz

In the United States, children get vaccinated to protect against serious diseases such as measles, mumps, polio and whooping cough at set intervals from birth to age 18. But the need for adults to get vaccinated is not always recognized. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the result is that “far too many adults become ill, are disabled, and die each year from diseases that could easily have been prevented by vaccines.”

Steve Zieniewicz, executive director, UW Medical Center, receives his annual flu shot from Jeff Gates, registered nurse, UWMC Employee Health Center.

Steve Zieniewicz, executive director, UW Medical Center, receives his annual flu shot from Jeff Gates, registered nurse, UWMC Employee Health Center.Henry Art Gallery

While adults may assume that childhood vaccines offer lifelong protection, the reality is more complex. For some diseases, they need newer vaccines that were not available when they were children. Other vaccines are not given to children because they target diseases that are more common and more serious for older people.

Although immunization decisions should be made in consultation with your health care professional, you can learn about them by checking the CDCs Recommended Adult Immunization Schedule or taking its Adolescent and Adult Vaccine Quiz. Both of these tools are posted on the CDC website, www.cdc.gov. As a general guideline, all adults are encouraged to get immunizations for the following vaccine-preventable diseases: shingles, pneumococcal disease, influenza, tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis.

Shingles

The shingles (herpes zoster) vaccine is recommended as a one-time dose for adults beginning at age 60. Shingles affects nearly one in three Americans at some point in their life and is most common in older people. This reactivation of the chicken pox virus causes a painful, blistering rash, which can be quite incapacitating. One in five people with shingles will develop a complication known as postherpetic neuralgia, which results in severe, long-term pain even after the rash heals.

Pneumococcal disease

A single dose of pneumococcal vaccine is recommended beginning at age 65 for all adults and earlier for people with certain risk factors. Pneumococcal disease is one the most common causes of vaccine-preventable death in the U.S. and is particularly dangerous for older adults. It can lead to serious infections of the lungs (pneumonia), the bloodstream (bacteremia) and the covering of the brain (meningitis).

Influenza

The 2009 outbreak of the H1N1 virus was a powerful reminder that the flu is a serious illness that causes an average of 36,000 deaths annually in the U.S. The current recommendation is that all adults and children over 6 months should get the annual flu shot to reduce their chances of getting ill and spreading the disease to family members and co-workers.

Tetanus, Diphtheria and Pertussis

After a three-dose primary vaccination series, booster shots are needed every 10 years for continued protection against tetanus and diphtheria. Due to an increase in the number of cases of pertussis (whooping cough), a one-time substitution of the Tdap vaccine is recommended for adults under 65 and for older people who have close contact with infants less than 12 months of age.

Keep in mind that these are general guidelines. Based on your medical history and other factors, your health care professional will make sure that there are no contraindications for a particular vaccine. Similarly, you may need additional immunizations if you have risk factors for other vaccine-preventable diseases, including human papillomavirus (HPV), hepatitis A, hepatitis B, varicella, measles, mumps, rubella and meningococcal disease.

Because an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, the bottom line is that immunizations are an important part of preventive care for adults. Along with regular checkups, age-appropriate screening tests, exercise and good nutrition, they can prevent disease and improve the quality of life. 

Edward Dy, M.D., is a board-certified internal medicine doctor at the UW Neighborhood Clinic in Kent/Des Moines and a clinical assistant professor at the University of Washington. For more information, call (800) 852-8546 or visit www.uwmedicine.org/uwpn.