The activities of anti-vaccination movements increasingly affect our society and reduce its confidence in science and its achievements. It is thanks to preventive vaccinations that we do not face the problem of measles and its complications, as well as tuberculosis, which is particularly dangerous for children under the age of three. What other diseases can come back after we stop vaccinating?

Odra

The return of this infectious disease is slowly becoming a fact. In 2022, 1,492 cases of measles were reported in Poland, and in 2005 it was only 13 cases.

Undoubtedly, this is the result of anti-vaccination movements and media disinformation that we have been grappling with for a long time. Measles is a virus-induced disease that is extremely contagious - close to 100%.

Measles - symptoms of the disease

The incubation period, i.e. the time from infection to the first symptoms of the disease, is usually 10-12 days. The main symptoms of measles are:

  • in the initial period - high fever, cough (typically dry), rhinitis, conjunctivitis with photophobia,
  • characteristic spots of Koplik - i.e. lumps of gray-white color, located on the oral mucosa, at the level of premolars,
  • skin rash - typically appearing as spots and papules,
  • less frequent diarrhea, enlarged lymph nodes.

Measles - complications

Measles is a disease that can have many complications, including:

  • otitis media,
  • pneumonia,
  • encephalitis,
  • myocarditis,
  • loss of sight due to optic neuritis,
  • subacute sclerosing encephalitis - an extremely serious and dangerous neurological complication, resulting in death. Its incidence is greater in people under the age of 2 who develop measles.

Odra - vaccination

Vaccination of children against measles is obligatory in Poland. The full two-dose vaccination schedule allows for 100% effectiveness.

According to the Preventive Immunization Program, vaccination against measles is combined with vaccinationagainst mumps and rubella. The first dose should be taken on days 13-15. month of life and the second - in the age of 6.

Tuberculosis

This is another infectious disease caused by bacteria from the Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex group.

What is the epidemiological situation of tuberculosis in Poland? In 2022, 5,321 cases of tuberculosis were recorded in our country, which is exactly 166 cases less than in 2022 and, interestingly, 2,188 cases less than in 2010, which is certainly positive information.

However, vaccination against tuberculosis should still be remembered, especially in times when social migrations are becoming more and more intense.

Tuberculosis - complications and severe disease

Although tuberculosis is associated primarily with the respiratory system and lungs, you should be aware that this disease can also damage other organs. We distinguish other forms of tuberculosis (apart from the pulmonary form), which include:

  • tuberculosis of the central nervous system - incl. meningitis, this form of tuberculosis can manifest as paresis, imbalance, altered consciousness, and seizures.
  • tuberculosis of bones and joints,
  • gastrointestinal tuberculosis,
  • genitourinary tuberculosis,
  • bone marrow tuberculosis.

You should be aware that tuberculosis can actually affect every organ of the human body.

Tuberculosis - vaccination

Children under 3 years of age are most exposed to tuberculosis and its consequences, therefore it is so important to immunize a child early against this infectious disease. The tuberculosis vaccine is administered in the first day of life of the newborn and it is not necessary to administer further doses at a later stage. It is a live vaccine (contains decongestant bacteria) and is administered intradermally.

Polio (Heine-Medin disease)

This infectious disease is sometimes also called paralysis and is caused by viruses. Thanks to the introduction of preventive vaccinations against polio, at the beginning of the twentieth century it was possible to eliminate the disease in Europe and the European continent was declared an area free from this disease. The last case of polio was in our country in 1984.

Polio - Heine-Medin disease vaccine

This infectious disease may be associated with serious neurological complications, such as:

  • meningitis,
  • swallowing disorders,
  • encephalitis,
  • urinary retention,
  • paralysis of the respiratory muscles, predisposing to pneumonia and respiratory failure,
  • permanent disability and disability - which results, among others, from from damage to the motor cells of the anterior horns of the spinal cord, leading to paralysis of flaccid muscles. Paralysis may affect up to four limbs and result in the child's disability.

We are protected against the complications of developing polio by the obligatory immunization in our country. The polio vaccine is given in a four-dose schedule:

  • in 3.-4. month of life,
  • in 5.-6. m.,
  • in 16-18. m.,
  • in the age of 6.

Diphtheria - a disease called diphtheria

It is an infectious disease caused by a bacterium - coryneform diphtheria. This bacterium colonizes, among others, the area around the throat, larynx and nasal cavity.

In these places, it causes tissue necrosis, which is manifested by the appearance of grayish pseudo-membranes, which, in combination with neck swelling, may result in respiratory failure and death of the child.

Diphtheria - vaccine

Before mass immunization, this disease was the cause of numerous epidemics and many deaths among children - in the 1950s in Poland there were about 40,000 cases and 3,000 deaths per year. This changed significantly in 1954 with the introduction of universal diphtheria vaccination. Currently on our continent there are about 20-30 cases of diphtheria every year.

In order to avoid complications of this dangerous infectious disease, it is enough to take advantage of compulsory vaccination. In Poland, a combination vaccine is used against diphtheria, whooping cough and tetanus. The adoption of this vaccine allows you to obtain protection against three serious infectious diseases.

The combined vaccine against diphtheria, whooping cough and tetanus is given in a combined 4-dose schedule at 2 months of age, then at 3-4 years of age. m.ż., 5.-6. and 16-18. month of life. There is also a booster dose at age 6.

Rose

It is an infectious disease caused by the rubella virus. The incubation period for this disease is typically 14 to 21 days. The complications that may accompany rubella include:

  • arthritis,
  • thrombocytopenia - a decrease in the number of platelets,
  • encephalitis - rare and fortunately low mortality,
  • myocarditis,
  • optic neuritis.

Remember that rubella is a very dangerous disease for the fetus - rubella infection in the firstweeks of pregnancy can even lead to fetal death and miscarriage.

Moreover, rubella in pregnancy can cause various defects in the fetus, including:

  • defects of the heart and large vessels,
  • visual impairment,
  • hearing impairment.
  • bone deformities.

Rubella - preventive vaccination

In order to protect yourself and the fetus against rubella, vaccination should be planned well in advance of pregnancy, because vaccination against this disease belongs to live vaccines. The schedule of compulsory vaccination is presented in the sub-section on measles, as they are combined vaccines together with the mumps vaccine.

Whooping cough (whooping cough)

It is an infectious disease affecting primarily the respiratory system, caused by a bacterium - pertussis bacillus. Whooping cough is most dangerous for infants and preschoolers who do not yet have a fully developed immune system.

Common symptoms of whooping cough are:

  • low-grade fever,
  • dry, tiring, paroxysmal cough that sounds like "foam"
  • and vomiting.

Complications of whooping cough that may occur in the youngest children include:

  • apnea,
  • pneumonia,
  • encephalopathy - permanent brain damage resulting from hypoxia of the central brain system.

In teenagers, we can deal with:

  • pneumonia,
  • convulsions,
  • urinary incontinence,
  • rib fractures.

Whooping cough immunization

Pertussis vaccine is combined with the tetanus and diphtheria vaccine. You should be aware that the whole cell vaccine gives immunity against whooping cough for about 10-12 years.

A way to maintain immunity is through booster doses, which should be given every 10 years. These booster doses are mainly recommended:

  • elderly people,
  • pregnant woman,
  • people around babies and newborns.

Tetanus

It is an infectious disease, dangerous primarily to the human nervous system. Its cause is the action of the tetanus toxin, produced by the bacterium - the tetanus rod. This toxin leads to an uncontrolled increase in skeletal muscle tone. Infection can occur even as a result of soil contamination of a small wound - tetanus rods live in the soil, as well as in the digestive tract of many animals.

The generalized form of tetanus is associated withthe appearance of symptoms resulting from increasing muscle stiffness, such as:

  • szczękościsk,
  • swallowing disorders,
  • arching of the spine, which results from the increased tension of the back muscles - such tension can even cause fractures within the spine,
  • paroxysmal muscle contractions of the limbs and other parts of the body,
  • diaphragm contraction, leading to significant breathing disorders, contractions of the respiratory muscles may even lead to respiratory failure.

The cause of death in tetanus are disturbances in the functioning of the vegetative nervous system, which lead to:

  • significant fluctuations in blood pressure,
  • arrhythmias
  • and sudden cardiac arrest.

Tetanus - vaccine

Protective vaccination against tetanus in children is a combined vaccination with diphtheria and pertussis vaccine, as already presented in the above paragraphs. All adults are recommended to take booster doses every 10 years.

To sum up, it is definitely not worth giving up on the obligatory vaccinations that are free in our country. It is thanks to the universal vaccination that we are not dealing with epidemics of diphtheria, complications of tuberculosis or disabilities caused by Heine-Medina disease.

  • Calendar of vaccinations 2022. Compulsory vaccinations for 2022
  • Combined vaccines (multi-component, polyvalent)
Authorbow. Katarzyna BanaszczykA graduate of the medical faculty of Collegium Medicum in Bydgoszcz, UMK in Toruń. Currently, he is carrying out a postgraduate medical internship. Author of scientific articles and many educational articles aimed at disseminating medical knowledge.

A graduate of the medical faculty at Collegium Medicum in Bydgoszcz, UMK in Toruń. Currently, he is carrying out a postgraduate medical internship. Author of scientific articles and many educational articles aimed at disseminating medical knowledge.

Category:

Infectious diseases