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3855 Trueman Court | Hilliard, Ohio | 43026
Hilliard Pediatrics, Inc. - Dr. Tim Teller, MD
This information is designed to supplement the American Academy of Pediatrics handouts about each of the vaccines. It is very important to read the information in those handouts. However, some additional information is available only here. Each of the vaccines is expected to protect against or prevent specific illnesses. Our decision to recommend the vaccines is based on scientific data on the effectiveness of the vaccines balanced by the information on side effects of the vaccines. The following information will help you be better informed about what to expect from the vaccines and what to do if any side effects occur.
While the schedule will vary somewhat between doctor’s offices, the vaccine schedule we follow is:
Remember that most children are fretful for a few minutes after any immunizations and then are fine afterwards. The common side effects and what to do for them are listed below.
Visit You Might Expect What to Do Call if These Occur
2 months Intermittent fever (100.5-102.9), fussiness, drowsiness, redness or swelling at the leg during the first 72 hours after the immunizations. Offer Tylenol® as often as every 4 hours (or Motrin® every 6 hours if 6 months or older) as needed for fever, fussiness, or redness or swelling. For the correct dose, please see the FEVER handout. A fever of 103 degrees or greater. A fever that begins more than 72 hours after the immunization. A fever that persists beyond 72 hours after the immunization. More than 3 hours of fretful crying.
4 months
6 months
15 months
12 months Low grade fever and non-itchy rash a week or two after the immunizations. Less likely would be a fever (100.5-102.9), fussiness, drowsiness, redness or swelling at the leg during the first 72 hours. No special treatment required. If child is uncomfortable with the fever, offer Tylenol® or Motrin® A fever of 103 degrees or greater. A fever that lasts more than 3 days.
5 years It is possible, but less likely that a 100.5-102.9 fever, frefulness, or redness or swelling at the leg will occur during the first 3 days after the immunizations. No special treatment is required. If the child is uncomfortable offer Tylenol® or Motrin®. A fever of 103 degrees or higher. A fever that lasts more than 72 hours after the immunization.
11-18 years Brief discomfort. Pain at the site of dizziness afterwards are common. Fever or rashes are uncommon. No special treatment. Offer Tylenol® or Motrin® for discomfort. A fever of 103 degrees or greater. A fever that lasts more than 3 days.
A note about preventatively giving Tylenol® to young infants: Giving Tylenol at least ½ to 1 hour before immunizations can decrease the discomfort felt by infants when they receive their shots. The dose of Tylenol® infant suspension is 1.25mL of the 160mg/5mL oral suspension at the 2 month check-up. You can give this dose before you leave the house or when you first arrive at the office after we confirm the proper dose based on their weight. The dose for older infants and children (and children that weigh 12 pounds or more) can be found on the Medication Dosages page above. Giving a dose before the immunizations will not prevent all the side effects listed above. The reason is that the dose will have left your child’s system by 4 hours, and it is not unusual for the fever, drowsiness, or redness or swelling to occur more than 4 hours after the shots. To prevent or decrease the chances of these later side effects, a dose of Tylenol® can be given every 4 hours for the first 24 hours. Considering the fact that most infants do not have any side effects, it is very reasonable to simply wait and see if any of the side effects do occur and then give Tylenol®. It is NOT recommended to use Motrin for infants less than 6 months of age. One very small study in Italy found that infants given a medicine similar to acetaminophen or Tylenol® before the vaccines decreased how well the vaccine worked to protect them against the illness. Further studies are needed to see if acetaminophen or Tylenol® does the same thing.
Children older than 6 months of age can be given ibuprofen (Motrin®, Advil®, generics) before an appointment in which they will receive vaccines and every 6 hours after as needed for fever, pain, or swelling at the site of the shot(s).
Note that if your child is sick with a mild illness, it will not interfere with the vaccines in any way. If more significant illnesses are present, we will discuss with you whether we should do the vaccines at a later date (later well child check or a later vaccine-only visit).
Vaccine | Daycare, Head Start, & Pre-Schools | Kindergarten | Older Grades |
---|---|---|---|
DaPT/DT | 4 doses | 4 doses (5 if all 4 given before the 4th birthday) | 1st-12th grade: 4 doses 7th-12th grade: 1 booster |
Polio (IPV/OPV) | 3 doses | 4 doses | 1st-12th grade: 4 doses |
MMR | 1 dose | 2 doses (1st on or after 1st birthday) | 1st-12th grade: 2 doses |
HIB | 3 or 4 doses (depends on vaccine type) | No requirement | No requirement |
Hepatitis B | 3 doses | 3 doses | 1st-12th grade: 3 doses |
Varicella (chickenpox) | 1 dose | 2 doses | 1st-3rd grade: 2 doses 4th-7th grade: 1 dose |
Meningococcal (MCV4) | - | - | 7th-10th grade: 1 dose 12th grade: 2 doses |
Note: Although a similar schedule as above is not listed on their website, the Ohio Department of Health requires that children attending child care, Head Start, and Pre-School are required to be immunized against Hepatitis A, Pneumococcal disease (Prevnar) and Rotavirus.
For more information, https://odh.ohio.gov/wps/portal/gov/odh/know-our-programs/immunization/immunization or call 1-800-282-0546.
Please be very cautious about information you read about vaccines from unofficial sources. Much of the unofficial information on the Internet and from other sources is inaccurate, half-true, or simply wrong. For information that you can trust regarding vaccines, the following resources should prove helpful.
Last Updated: 06/2019