| vaccination, mumps | See Vaccination, MMR. Vaccination, pneumococcal pneumonia: this vaccine, which prevents one of the most common and severe forms of pneumonia, is usually given only once in a lifetime, usually after the age of 55, to someone with ongoing lung problems (such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (copd) or asthma) or other chronic diseases (including those involving the heart and kidneys). This vaccination would rarely be given to children. (12 Dec 1998) |
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| vaccination, polio | The vaccines available for vaccination against polio are opv (oral polio vaccine) and ipv (inactivated polio vaccine). Opv is still the preferred vaccine for most children. As its name suggests, it is given by mouth. Ipv, or inactivated polio vaccine is given as a shot in the arm or leg. Infants and children should be given four doses of opv. The doses are given at 2 months, 4 months, 6-18 months and 4-6 years of age. Persons allergic to eggs or the drugs neomycin or streptomycin should receive opv, not the injectable ipv. Conversely, ipv should be given if the vaccine recipient is on long-term steroid (cortisone) therapy, has cancer, or is on chemotherapy or if a household member has aids or there is an unimmunised adult in the house. (12 Dec 1998) |
| vaccination, rubella | See Vaccination, MMR. (12 Dec 1998) |
| vaccination, varicella zoster | See Vaccineation, chickenpox. (12 Dec 1998) |
| vaccinator | 1. A person who vaccinates. Synonym: vaccinist. 2. A scarifier or other instrument used in vaccination. (05 Mar 2000) |
| vaccine | <pharmacology> A suspension of attenuated or killed microorganisms (bacteria, viruses or rickettsiae), administered for the prevention, amelioration or treatment of infectious diseases. Origin: L. Vaccinus (18 Nov 1997) |
| vaccine bodies | Old term pertaining to intracellular body's that were erroneously thought to be forms in the life cycle of a protozoan organism, Cytorrhyctes vaccinae, postulated to be the causal agent of vaccinia. (05 Mar 2000) |
| vaccine lymph | Vaccinia lymph, that collected from the vesicles of vaccinia infection, and used for active immunization against smallpox. (05 Mar 2000) |
| vaccine, flu | The flu (influenza) vaccine is recommended for persons at high risk for serious complications from influenza infection, including everyone 65 or over; people with chronic diseases of the heart, lung or kidneys, diabetes, immunosuppression, or severe forms of anaemia; residents of nursing homes and other chronic-care facilities, children and teenagers taking aspirin therapy (and who may therefore be at risk for developing reye syndrome after an influenza infection), and those in close or frequent contact with anyone at high risk. Persons with an allergy to eggs should not receive influenza vaccine. (12 Dec 1998) |
| vaccine, influenza | See Vaccine, flu. Vaccination, dtap: like dpt, dtap protects from diphtheria, pertussis (whooping cough) and tetanus. Dtap is the same as dtp, except that it contains only acellular pertussis vaccine which is thought to cause fewer of the minor reactions associated with immunization and is also probably less likely to cause the more severe reactions occasionally seen following pertussis vaccination. Dtap is currently recommended only for the shots given at 18 months and 4-6 years of age. Vaccination, dt: dt (diphtheria and tetanus) vaccine does not protect from pertussis and is usually reserved for individuals who have had a significant adverse reaction to a dpt shot or who have a personal or family history of a seizure disorder or brain disease. (12 Dec 1998) |
| vaccineation, serum hepatitis | See Vaccination, hepatitis b. (12 Dec 1998) |
| vaccines | Vaccines are microbial preparations of killed or modified microorganisms which can stimulate an immune response in the body in order to prevent future infection with similar microorganism. The smallpox vaccine has totally eliminated the smallpox disease from our planet. (12 Dec 1998) |
| vaccines, attenuated | Live vaccines prepared from microorganisms which have undergone physical adaptation (e.g., by radiation or temperature conditioning) or serial passage in laboratory animal hosts or infected tissue/cell cultures, in order to produce avirulent mutant strains capable of inducing protective immunity. (12 Dec 1998) |
| vaccines, combined | Two or more vaccines in a single dosage form. (12 Dec 1998) |
| vaccines, conjugate | Semisynthetic vaccines consisting of polysaccharide antigens from microorganisms attached to protein carrier molecules. The carrier protein is recognised by macrophages and T-cells thus enhancing immunity. Conjugate vaccines induce antibody formation in people not responsive to polysaccharide alone, induce higher levels of antibody, and show a booster response on repeated injection. (12 Dec 1998) |