As an adult you may think that you are done with immunizations, but guess what? You are not! One of the more common ailments I have been seeing with my patients is adult pertussis or whooping cough. This happens because the vaccine we were given as kids can wear off. For adults the disease is an incredible nuisance. It is what we call the 100-day cough, aptly named because that is how long the side-splitting, spasmodic cough usually lasts.

It is bothersome to us but can be deadly if passed on to infants who may not be immunized for it yet. That is why we all need a booster that is given along with the tetanus shot.  It is called the TDAP.  After you get your pertussis vaccine, you can get the tetanus booster alone every ten years (or sooner if you get attacked by a rusty nail).

The other vaccine I highly recommend is the shingles vaccine.  That can be given at age 60 and one shot is enough. It may not completely prevent shingles but can limit the severity of an outbreak. Shingles occurs in those who have had chicken pox.  At the time you get the disease, the virus hides in a nerve and then one day when you get good and stressed out or your immunity drops, you can get shingles.  This is a disease that results in painful sores.  It will occur on only one side of the body in the distribution of a particular nerve.  It can be any nerve so it can be located anywhere on the body.  If you have never had chicken pox, have your doctor check a blood test to make sure you are not immune and then make sure you get the chicken pox vaccine.  If you have never gotten chicken pox and you get the vaccine, you will never get shingles.

I never used to get the flu vaccine until many years ago when I was working in an urgent care and watched four healthy men in there forties (over the course of a winter) die from the disease.  That was enough for me.  Everyone is freaking out over Ebola, which has killed at least 2000 people this year.  Influenza on average kills 36,000 people in the US.  Should you get the flu vaccine? Yes.

Pneumonia is another potentially preventable disease. The pneumonia vaccine can help protect against multiple strains of pneumococcal pneumonia.  It can be given before the age of 65 to those who are at risk such as asthma and COPD patients, those with cancer, kidney disease, liver disease, etc.  After 65 it is recommended for everyone.  One shot is all you need.

For those who travel and those who work in the medical profession and work with people who may be ill, I recommend vaccines to protect against hepatitis A and B, Meningicoccus, and Hemophilus influenza type b.

I have encountered many young adults recently who have NEVER been vaccinated.  This is a very scary notion. Especially when world travel makes it easy for communicable diseases to be brought into areas where they never have been before.  Measles and mumps are on the rise, polio is still present in the world and I remember what it was like before we had vaccines for these diseases.  It was horrible.  If you or your children fall into this category, please catch up on these vaccines as well as the ones I have mentioned before it is too late.

It is important to have a discussion regarding which vaccines are best for you with your doctor.  He or she can look at your risk for various diseases and help you to decide which ones are best for you. Vaccines are relatively safe and can save lives.