Immunizations - Diptheria, Tetanus, and Pertussis

Vaccinations for Diphtheria, Tetanus, and Pertussis

The Initial Vaccination. Diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis are very different disorders, but a combination injection has been routinely given to children since the 1940s. The standard vaccine is DTaP, which uses a form of the pertussis component known as acellular pertussis that consists of a single weakened toxoid. (The older vaccine, DTP, includes a pertussis vaccine that contains multiple toxins against different variants of the disease. It has more severe side effects than DTaP.)

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The Booster. Protection against diphtheria and tetanus from the vaccine lasts about 10 years. At that point a booster may be given against tetanus and diphtheria (Td). The Td vaccine contains the standard dose against tetanus and a less potent one against diphtheria and does not contain the pertussis component. In April 2005, the FDA approved the first pertussis booster shot ("Boostrix") forkids aged 10 to 18.Boostrix is a lower dose of infant petussis vaccine.The infant pertussis vaccinecan start to wear off after about 5 years, andsomepreviously immunized teens and adults can get a mild form of the disease. The booster shotmay help reduce the number of pertussis cases in adolescents and adults. The FDA also approved in 2005 another novel boostervaccine calledAdacel for protection against tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis from adolescence through adulthood.

DTaP Schedule in Childhood. The DTaP vaccine should be given to all children less than seven years old. In general, the vaccinations are given as follows:

Infants receive a series of three vaccinations at two, four, and six months of age. (doctors may delay a vaccination in infants with suspected neurologic problems until their neurologic situation is clarified, but no later than their first birthday). Children with neurologic problems that have been corrected can be vaccinated.
A fourth dose is given between 15 and 18 months. (Infants at higher risk, such as those exposed to an outbreak of pertussis, may be given this vaccination earlier.) Of note, children who receive their third shot late in the schedule are at higher risk for skipping the fourth dose than children who were on schedule. Parents should be sure to adhere to a schedule that includes the fourth shot, even if they were late on the third.
A fifth dose is given at four to six years. This fifth shot now usually includes a vaccine against H. influenzae as well.
Children between the ages of eleven and fifteen years old should receive a tetanus and diphtheria (Td) booster shot.