Immunization Branch
|
 |
|
Dictionary Menu
NOTE: All information is intended for your general knowledge
only and is not a substitute for medical advice or treatment for specific
medical conditions.
Find the definition and information about:
Chickenpox (Varicella)
Varicella is a highly contagious disease. Symptoms of the
disease include fever, general feeling of illness and a rash of blister-like
bumps. The virus is transmitted from person to person primarily by direct
contact with infected persons, or from airborne spread of respiratory
secretions. Although considered a common childhood disease, the varicella zoster
virus can reactivate later in life and cause a painful sensory-nerve rash called
shingles. Approximately 100 deaths per year nationally occur from complications
of varicella.
Diphtheria
Diphtheria is an acute infectious disease of the nose,
throat, respiratory passages or skin caused by bacteria usually passed, via
coughing or sneezing, from one infected person to the nose or throat of another.
Symptoms include the gradual onset of a sore throat, a low-grade fever, and
weakness. A thick mucus membrane often covers the entire throat and extends to
respiratory passages, making it difficult to breathe. The lymph nodes of the
neck tend to be enlarged. Diphtheria can lead to heart failure, paralysis and
death.
Haemophilus influenza type b (Hib)
Hib bacteria reside in the nose and throat of many people
without making them ill, but can cause serious illness, especially in
preschool-aged children. Before a vaccine was available, Hib disease was the
most common cause of meningitis in children under the age of five, and often led
to pneumonia, skin infections, hearing loss, permanent brain injury or death.
The disease is spread through the air by coughing and sneezing. Symptoms of
illness include a high fever, severe headache, stiff neck, quiet or withdrawn
behavior, sensitivity to light, vomiting, ear infections and convulsions. Hib
infection can also cause epiglottitis--a swelling in the throat which is
potentially life-threatening.
Hepatitis A
Hepatitis A is an infection of the liver caused by the
hepatitis A virus. It is spread from person to person by putting something in
the mouth that has been contaminated with the stool of an infected person.
Symptoms include lack of energy, diarrhea, fever, nausea and jaundice (yellow
color to the whites of the eyes or skin). Not all infected people have symptoms
but can still infect others. Many children do not have symptoms, so they often
play a major role in passing the infection to others. The highest rates of
hepatitis A are among children and young adults. Long term effects are uncommon,
however there are about 100 deaths nationally each year from hepatitis A
complications.
Hepatitis B
Hepatitis B is a potentially serious infection of the liver
that can cause chronic liver disease and can lead to liver cancer. Symptoms
include nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain and jaundice. However, many people who
become infected have no symptoms. A small number of people infected with
hepatitis B will carry the virus for life and can unknowingly spread the disease
to others. The younger a person is when becoming infected, the greater the risk
of chronic infection, chronic liver disease and liver cancer. The disease is
spread through exposure to infected blood and body fluids. Hepatitis B can be
spread by sharing toothbrushes, needles or razors that belong to an infected
person; through contact with infected blood such as health care workers at a
health care setting; using equipment that has not been sterilized for
body-piercing or tattooing; having sex with a person who has hepatitis B; or by
an infected mother to her baby during childbirth. A baby born to a mother who
has hepatitis B has a 90 percent chance of getting the disease. Those babies
infected have a 90 percent chance of becoming chronically infected and 25
percent will die of chronic liver disease as adults. Immunization at birth is
important for prevention of the disease.
Human Papillomavirus
(HPV)
Genital human papillomavirus (HPV) is the most common sexually transmitted
virus in the United States. There are about 40 types of HPV. About 20 million
people in the U.S. are infected, and about 6.2 million more get infected each
year. HPV is spread through sexual contact. Most HPV infections don’t cause any
symptoms, and go away on their own. But HPV is important mainly because it can
cause cervical cancer in women. Every year in the U.S. about 10,000 women get
cervical cancer and 3,700 die from it. It is the 2nd leading cause of cancer
deaths among women around the world. HPV is also associated with several less
common types of cancer in both men and women. It can also cause genital warts
and warts in the upper respiratory tract. More than 50 percent of sexually
active men and women are infected with HPV at sometime in their lives. There is
no treatment for HPV infection, but the conditions it causes can be treated.
Protection from HPV vaccine is expected to be long-lasting. But vaccinated women
still need cervical cancer screening because the vaccine does not protect
against all HPV types that cause cervical cancer.
Measles
Measles is a potentially serious and highly contagious
childhood disease. It can lead to ear infection, pneumonia, seizures, brain
damage and death. Before the measles vaccine was introduced, measles caused
about 400 deaths in the U.S. each year. Measles begins with cold-like
symptoms-fever, red runny eyes, cough, runny nose and tiredness. This lasts
about three days. Then small white spots appear on the inside of the mouth and a
rash begins, usually on the face. This red, raised rash spreads rapidly over the
neck, upper arms and chest. Later it spreads over the back, abdomen, rest of the
arms, thighs, legs and feet. The illness lasts 7 to 10 days.
Mumps
Mumps is caused by a virus. It usually causes painful
swelling of the glands that lie just above the back angle of the jaw, but other
glands may be affected. It can cause fever, headache and mild respiratory
symptoms. After puberty, mumps can cause swollen testes or ovaries. Rarely,
mumps causes deafness. Mumps is transmitted through the air or by direct contact
with the saliva of an infected person. Many people with a mumps virus infection
may have only mild symptoms that may resemble a cold. Symptoms of mumps
generally last from one week to 10 days.
Polio
The wild polio virus has been eliminated in North and South
America but not elsewhere in the world, which means all children should continue
to be immunized against it. Polio is a viral infection transmitted by fecal-oral
contact. Milder cases may last only a few days, causing fever, sore throat,
stomachache and headache. If the disease worsens, it can cause severe muscle
pain, paralysis, breathing difficulty, and even death.
Rubella (German Measles)
Rubella is a relatively mild viral illness that may go
undiagnosed because of its mild symptoms. Although it seldom poses a major risk
to children, rubella does put unborn infants at considerable risk. Pregnant
women who get rubella can miscarry or have babies with severe birth defects. The
first symptoms of rubella are usually swollen, tender glands at the back of the
neck and behind the ears, a mild fever and then a rash. The rash and a
"flush" appear first on the face, then spread quickly to the trunk, upper arms
and thighs. The rash then moves to the forearms, hands and feet. Teenagers and
adults may have painful or swollen joints.
Tetanus (Lockjaw)
Tetanus is a severe, often fatal disease. The bacteria that
cause tetanus are widely distributed in soil and are found in the waste of many
animals. People who get tetanus suffer from stiffness and spasms of the muscles.
The larynx (throat) can close causing breathing and eating difficulties, muscles
spasms can cause fractures (breaks) of the spine and long bones. Approximately
30% of the people who get tetanus will die from the disease.
Whooping Cough (Pertussis)
Pertussis is a highly contagious bacterial respiratory
infection spread by coughing or sneezing. It starts like a common cold, but
within a few days coughs come in exhausting bursts, often followed by a
"whooping" sound as the person breathes in. Long coughing spells make it
difficult for a person to eat, drink or even breathe. Vomiting can also follow a
long coughing spell. The disease is most serious in small infants. With older
children and adults the disease can be quite mild or can cause several weeks of
exhausting coughing. Whooping cough is transmitted through the air when an
infected person coughs.
Top of Page