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What is Hib disease? |
Haemophilus influenza type b (Hib) disease
is a serious disease caused by a bacteria.
It usually affects children under 5 years
of age.
Your child can get Hib disease by being
around other children or adults who may
carry
the bacteria and does not know. The germs
spread from person to person. If the germs
stay in the child's nose and throat, the
child probably will not get sick. But
sometimes the germs spread into the lungs or
the bloodstream, and then Hib can cause
serious problems. Before Hib vaccine, Hib
disease was the leading cause of bacterial
meningitis among children under 5 years old
in the United States. Meningitis is an
infection of the brain and spinal cord
coverings, which can lead to lasting brain
damage and deafness. Hib disease can also
cause:
- severe swelling in the throat (epiglottits),
making it hard to breathe
- infections in the blood, joints, bones,
and covering of the heart
Before Hib vaccine, about 20,000 children in
the United States under 5 years old got
severe Hib disease each year and nearly
1,000 people died.
Hib vaccine can prevent Hib disease.
Many more children would get Hib disease if
we stopped vaccinating.
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Who
should get Hib vaccine and when? |
Children should get Hib vaccine at:
If you miss a dose or get behind schedule,
get the next dose as soon as you can. There
is no need to start over.
Hib vaccine may be given at the same time
with
other vaccines.
Older Children over 5 years and Adults Children over 5
years old usually do not need Hib vaccine.
But some older children or adults with
special health conditions should get it.
These conditions include sickle cell
disease, HIV/AIDS, removal of the spleen,
bone marrow transplant, or cancer treatment
with drugs. Ask your doctor for
details.
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Who should not get Hib vaccine
or should wait?
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People who have
ever had a life-threatening allergic reaction to
a previous dose of Hib vaccine should not get
another dose.
Children less than 6 weeks of age should not
get Hib vaccine.
People who are moderately or severely ill at
the time the shot is scheduled should
usually wait until they recover before
getting Hib vaccine.
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What are the risks from Hib vaccine? |
A vaccine, like any medicine, is capable of
causing serious problems, such as severe
allergic reactions. The risk of Hib vaccine
causing serious harm is extremely small.
Most people who get Hib vaccine do not have
any problems with it.
- Redness, warmth, or swelling where the
shot was given (up to one fourth of
children)
- Fever over 101 degrees Fahrenheit (up to
1 out of 20 children)
If these problems happen, they usually start
within a day of vaccination and may last 2
to 3 days.
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What's the
difference between Haemophilus influenzae type b
and influenza? |
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Haemophilus
influenzae type b
is a polysaccharide - encapsulated bacteria that
causes a variety of invasive syndromes, such as
meningitis, epiglottitis, and pneumonia.
Influenza is a virus that causes the disease
influenza. Historical note: Haemophilus
influenzae was first isolated in 1889 from the
sputum of a patient who died of influenza, and
the isolated organism (then called the Pfeiffer
bacillus) was assumed to have caused the
patient's illness. Haemophilus influenzae
received its name in 1920, to acknowledge its
historical association with influenza. The viral
cause of influenza was not discovered until 1933 |
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An infant received 2
doses of Hib vaccine of a type that we do not
stock in our clinic. How do I finish the child's
Hib series? |
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Hib
conjugate vaccines licensed for use in infants
are interchangeable. The series may be completed
with any vaccine licensed for infants. The child
should receive a total of 3 doses of any
combination of Hib vaccines before the first
birthday. Any licensed conjugate vaccine may be
used as the booster dose at 12-15 months of age
if at least two months have elapsed since the
previous dose. |
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What is the Hib
schedule for children >15 months of age who have
fallen behind or are completely unvaccinated?
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Children 15-59 months of age who have an
incomplete Hib vaccination schedule, including
those who are unvaccinated, should receive a
single dose of any Hib conjugate vaccine. Hib
vaccine is not routinely recommended for persons
5 years of age or older. |
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If an infant received
one dose of Hib at 5 months, and another at 15
months, does he/she need any more doses?
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No.
If a child receives a dose of Hib vaccine at 15
months of age or older, he or she does not need
any further doses regardless of the number of
doses received before 15 months of age. |
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Since the booster
dose of Hib vaccine can be given at 12-15
months, is it still necessary to "boost" two
months later if the first dose was given at
12-14 months? |
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If
the child received a primary series (2 or 3
doses) of Hib vaccine in the first year of life,
then the final (booster) dose of the series may
be given as early as 12 months, provided at
least 2 months have passed since the last dose.
An unvaccinated 12-14 month old child should
receive one dose as a primary series, and a
booster dose 2 months later. Unvaccinated
children 15-59 months of age need only a single
dose of any licensed conjugate Hib vaccine |
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If a dose of Hib
vaccine was given by mistake to a 2-week-old,
should further doses of Hib vaccine be given?
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Limited data suggest that Hib vaccine given
before 6 weeks of age may induce immunologic
tolerance to Hib antigen and reduce the response
to subsequent doses. As a result, Hib vaccine
should not be given earlier than 6 weeks of age.
However, if a dose was administered before 6
weeks of age, it should not be counted as part
of the Hib series. A full series of 4 doses (Hibtiter,
ActHib, and Omnihib) or 3 doses (PedvaxHib and
Comvax) should be started at 6–8 weeks of age as
usual. No special protocol or testing is
recommended for children who received a dose of
Hib vaccine before 6 weeks of age. |
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How many total doses
of Hib vaccine are needed for a 12-month old who
received one previous dose?
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A
12-month old who received only one previous dose
would need one dose of any conjugate Hib vaccine
now, and a second dose 2 months later |
