Which Baby Vaccines are very important?

Baby vaccine preparation

Baby vaccines are the injections given to a baby after birth and at certain months before they attain age 2 under the KEPI program. KEPI stands for Kenya Expanded Programme on Immunization which is an organization that was established in 1980 in Kenya to curb the leading diseases in child mortality. The known conditions are polio, tuberculosis, diphtheria, whooping cough tetanus, and measles.

The following are the vaccines for a child below the age of 2 years;

Baby Vaccines At Birth

Immediately after a child is born, there is a vaccine they should receive. Some children are not born at a hospital facility and should always be taken to a nearby hospital to get the dose. The vaccine is known as BCG(Bacillus Calmette- Guerin) vaccine. A pimple-like mark that is black is a clear indication one got the vaccine after healing completely. However, this is not a must to have the scar. It is administered on the upper part of the left arm. It is also mainly used as a mark of identity for an East African community member.

Baby vaccines At 6 weeks

baby vaccine being given.

At 6 weeks the Rotavirus vaccine is given. It is known as Rotarix. This vaccine prevents the virus which results in diarrhea of high severity. The first dose of the polio vaccine is also administered. The Polio vaccine prevents polio disease which is a result of bacteria from stagnant water that affects the development of bones.

Babies get the shot of the Hepatitis vaccine. This vaccine prevents the child from the severity of Hepatitis B which affects the liver through the exchange of body fluids such as semen and blood.

Babies also receive the Pneumococcal vaccine which prevents severe lung infection in babies.

Baby vaccines At 10 weeks

Babies receive the second dose of the oral Polio vaccine. They also get the second oral shot of Rotavirus. They also get another dose of DPT, Hepatitis B, and Pneumococcal.

At 14 Weeks

Babies receive booster doses of the Oral polio vaccine, DPT, Hepatitis B, and Pneumococcal.

At 6 Months

Babies get oral Vitamin A. It is repeated every 6 months from the first dose until the child is 5 years. Vitamin A helps in building a strong immune system for the body to fight disease-causing micro-organisms and improve eyesight in young babies.

There is also an optional vaccine which is known as the Flu vaccine given to protect the child against bad flu, especially during the cold weather season.

At 9 Months

The Measles vaccine is given at 9 months. This vaccine protects the child against measles which is a viral infection that affects the nose and throat infection that causes pneumonia. The yellow fever vaccine is also given at this age. Yellow fever is a virus spread by mosquitoes through bites that result in jaundice, fever, headache, vomiting, and muscle pain.

At 18 Months

At this age, the booster shot of the measles vaccine is given. It is highly recommended that your child gets all the listed above vaccines which prevent them from being at high risk of contracting the disease.

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