Immunizations and Vaccines

One of the greatest health achievements of the past century is the reduction and near elimination of numerous infectious diseases, often epidemic, through public immunization campaigns. Devastating diseases such as Polio, Measles, Chickenpox, and Tetanus that were feared by parents and children are now extremely rare. Scientists continue their research to seek and develop vaccines for modern public health threats such as HPV, HIV and the viruses that cause pneumonia. But routine vaccinations are still important for all children and adults in order to protect the public from the scourges of the past.

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Facts

  • Before measles immunizations were available, nearly everyone in the U.S. contracted measles. If measles vaccinations were stopped, each year 2.7 million measles deaths could be expected worldwide.

    Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, What Would Happen If We Stopped Vaccinations? April 2007.

  • Before the Polio vaccine arrived in 1955, Polio caused nearly 2,000 deaths and 16,000 cases of paralysis each year. Polio has since been virtually eliminated from the Western Hemisphere.

    Achievements in Public Health, 1900-1999 Impact of Vaccines Universally Recommended for Children -- United States, 1990-1998, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention MMWR, April 1999.

  • Unvaccinated people can pass diseases on to babies who are too young to be fully immunized, and to children and adults who can’t be immunized for medical reasons. They can also infect the small percentage of children whose immunizations did not take.

    What if you don't immunize your child? Immunization Action Coalition: http://www.immunize.org/catg.d/p4017.pdf

  • HPV (human papillomavirus) is the most common sexually transmitted diseases – 50% of sexually active people will get HPV at some point in their life. HPV can cause genital warts in men and women, and cervical cancer in women. Recently developed vaccines now help prevent the most dangerous types of HPV.

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