At present, children's vaccination work, which was previously suspended due to the impact of the epidemic, is gradually resuming. Many parents have doubts, how to re-vacculate unfinished doses? In response to some common questions from parents, WHO provides the following answers.
Q:
Some vaccines require a second or third dose on time. Affected by the COVID-19 epidemic, some children have missed the scheduled vaccination opportunities for subsequent doses. Will this cause the doses of vaccines that have been received to lose their effectiveness?
A:
The dose interval of the vaccine is mainly to allow children to generate a sufficient immune response. Across vaccines, delayed catch-up has little impact on the efficacy of doses already administered.
It is recommended that parents pay attention to their children's vaccination records and make appointments with vaccination clinics in their jurisdiction. Arrange your child for vaccination first. After the vaccination, the next vaccination time will be recalculated according to the interval recommended by the national health authority.
Q:
It is said that vaccination can affect the immune system. So when children receive multiple vaccines on the same day or within a short period of time, will it increase the risk of other disease infections?
A:
No, receiving multiple vaccines on the same day or within a short period of time will not increase the risk of children being infected by other diseases. Although vaccines are the safest medical products, they can still cause transient, tolerable mild symptoms, and some children may experience fever or sore limbs.
Q:
After determining the vaccine catch-up time, it is found that the child has exceeded the age range of the vaccine. Will such catch-up affect the effectiveness of the vaccine?
A:
The optimal age range for vaccination is determined based on two points in time: the age before the risk of contracting a disease is greatest, and the age when the best immune response is produced. Disease prevention is best when vaccinated regularly, following the recommendations of WHO and national health authorities. Delayed catch-up vaccination can still improve children's immunity, so most vaccines do not have an upper age limit. Therefore, when it comes to vaccines, even for a few vaccines with recommended upper age limits, parents should seek medical staff’s advice on the vaccine and its vaccination based on the child’s age, previous vaccination history, etc.
Therefore, parents should quickly follow the steps below and take their babies to get vaccinated!
Source: World Health Organization
