Parents agree that feeding and sleep schedules are important to help keep their children healthy.  The same goes for childhood immunizations. Vaccinating children on time is the best way to protect them against 14 serious and potentially deadly diseases before their second birthday.

“The recommended immunization schedule is designed to protect babies early in life, when they are vulnerable and before it’s likely that they will be exposed to diseases,” said Dr. Nancy Messonnier, Deputy Director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases (NCIRD), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Public health and medical experts base their vaccine recommendations on many factors. They study information about diseases and vaccines very carefully to decide which vaccines kids should get and when they should get them for best protection.

Although the number of vaccines a child needs in the first two years may seem like a lot, doctors know a great deal about the human immune system, and they know that a healthy baby’s immune system can handle getting all vaccines when they are recommended. Dr. Messonnier cautions against parents delaying vaccination. “There is no known benefit to delaying vaccination. In fact, it puts babies at risk of getting sick because they are left vulnerable to catch serious diseases during the time they are not protected by vaccines.”

When parents choose not to vaccinate or to follow a delayed schedule, children are left unprotected against diseases that still circulate in this country, like measles and whooping cough. Since 2010, we have seen between 10,000 and 50,000 cases of whooping cough each year in the United States. And, up to 20 babies die from whooping cough each year in the United States. Most whooping cough deaths are among babies who are too young to be protected by their own vaccination.

The United States experienced a record number of measles cases during 2014, with 667 cases from 27 states reported to CDC's NCIRD. This was the greatest number of cases in the U.S. since measles was eliminated in 2000. Staying on track with the immunization schedule ensures that children have the best protection against diseases like these by age 2.

Parents who are concerned about the number of shots given at one time can reduce the number given at a visit by using the flexibility built into the recommended immunization schedule. For example, the third dose of hepatitis B vaccine can be given at 6 through 18 months of age. Parents can work with their child’s healthcare professional to have their child get this dose at any time during that age range.
 
Keeli Kovach, LPN with the Monongalia County WIC-ICE (Immunization Coordination Effort) program said, “A parent’s decision to delay vaccines may occur for different reasons. Often times the choice is made because of misinformation and fear. As parents and grandparents, we all want to do what is best for the child and cause no harm. However, the fact is, by delaying vaccination, a child is placed at unnecessary risk, with no benefit.”

If you have questions about the childhood immunization schedule, talk with your child’s doctor or nurse.

The WIC Immunization Program offers vaccines at no cost to eligible infants and children in Harrison, Marion, Monongalia, Preston and Taylor Counties. WIC-ICE is a Vaccine for Children Provider and is the only WIC program of its kind in the State of West Virginia.  Information and appointments are available by calling your local WIC office, the MCHD WIC office at 304-598-5181 or 800-675-5181.

In a press release today, CDC announced that “Scientists at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) have concluded, after careful review of existing evidence, that Zika virus is a cause of microcephaly and other severe fetal brain defects. In the report published in the New England Journal of Medicine, the CDC authors describe a rigorous weighing of evidence using established scientific criteria.”

“This study marks a turning point in the Zika outbreak.  It is now clear that the virus causes microcephaly.  We are also launching further studies to determine whether children who have microcephaly born to mothers infected by the Zika virus is the tip of the iceberg of what we could see in damaging effects on the brain and other developmental problems,” said Tom Frieden, M.D., M.P.H., director of the CDC. “We’ve now confirmed what mounting evidence has suggested, affirming our early guidance to pregnant women and their partners to take steps to avoid Zika infection and to health care professionals who are talking to patients every day. We are working to do everything possible to protect the American public.”

Microcephaly is a birth defect where the baby’s head is smaller than expected when compared to babies of the same sex and age. Babies with microcephaly often have smaller brains that might not have developed properly.

CDC also announced that “At this time, CDC is not changing its current guidance as a result of this finding. Pregnant women should continue to avoid travel to areas where Zika is actively spreading. If a pregnant woman travels to or lives in an area with active Zika virus transmission, she should talk with her healthcare provider and strictly follow steps to prevent mosquito bites and to prevent sexual transmission of Zika virus. We also continue to encourage women and their partners in areas with active Zika transmission to engage in pregnancy planning and counseling with their health care providers so that they know the risks and the ways to mitigate them.”

With the possibilities of microcephaly and other birth defects being linked to pregnant women who were infected with the Zika virus, pregnant women need to take steps to protect themselves and their fetus because there are no vaccines or antivirals that will act against the virus. The most common way to become infected with the Zika virus is to be bitten by a mosquito followed by becoming infected by sexual transmission from a male partner. Protection is dependent on the individual to take the appropriate actions.

If you are concerned about becoming infected with the Zika virus, consider the following:

• Avoid being bitten by mosquitoes.
• At this time, there is no evidence that women can transmit the virus to their sex          partners.
• Males who have traveled to or live in Zika areas may be infected and represent a sexual risk.
• At this time, you are not at risk of being infected by the virus if you travel to or live in an area without Zika transmission.
• If you are concerned about becoming infected by your partner, use a condom or do not have sex.
• If you think that you may have become infected by the Zika virus, contact your healthcare provider.

While this information is constantly changing and being updated, there are two public health generalities that can help you avoid not only becoming infected by the Zika virus but also by other mosquito borne diseases and STDs.

1. Take precautions to avoid being bitten by mosquitoes.
2. Unless you know your partner is disease-free, use a condom or do not have sex.

  by Mackenzie Christiana

STDs affect people of all ages, but largely affect young people. The Center for Disease Control estimated that individuals ages 15-24 make up over a quarter of the sexually active population and account for more than 10 million new sexually transmitted infections that occur in the United States annually.

April is STD Awareness month. Some STDs include bacterial vaginosis (BV), chlamydia, gonorrhea, HIV and AIDS, Human Papillomavirus (HPV), Pelvic Inflammatory Disease (PID), syphilis and trichomoniasis. While some STDs may be common, curable and not extremely harmful, others can be terminal, life threatening and debilitating. Some STDs may effect certain groups of individuals more than others, such as gay men or pregnant woman. Some individuals who have a STD do not present with symptoms, so it is important to be tested for STDs if you are sexually actively, especially with more than one partner. It is important to be aware of different types of STDs, their symptoms, treatment and prevention in order to look out for the health of you and your partner.

Sexually transmitted diseases range in severity, the ability to be cured and long term affects. Many STDs are curable. Bacterial vaginosis, chlamydia, gonorrhea, pelvic inflammatory disease, syphilis and trichomoniasis are all curable. Many STDs can be treated with antibiotics. Bacterial vaginosis and chlamydia can occur more than once even after they have been treated. Genital herpes is a STD that is not curable, but can be managed. There is a vaccine to prevent against the contraction of human papillomavirus.

Because there are short term and long term effects from being infected with a STD, it is important that both men and woman be tested for STDs. This is especially important for those individuals and/or couples that are sexually active . Many STDs that infect woman can cause infertility or difficulty getting pregnant. If a woman who has a STD does get pregnant, the STD could be passed to the baby or cause low birth weight or early delivery. Chlamydia, gonorrhea, genital herpes, syphilis and other STDs can be passed to a baby during pregnancy and/or birth. Bacterial vaginosis and pelvic inflammatory disease can make it difficult for a woman to get pregnant. Genital herpes can increase a woman's chance of having a miscarriage.

It is important to be tested so that if you are positive your STD can be treated or you can be educated on how to manage a STD that is not treatable. If a STD goes untreated, it can lead to the development of other diseases, like pelvic inflammatory disease or make it easier to contract another STD or HIV. Untreated HPV can lead to different types of cancers that effect reproductive organs.

It is possible to prevent the transmission of sexually transmitted diseases. The most reliable way to prevent the contraction of STDs is to be abstinent, or not have sex. Other, less certain ways, to prevent developing a STD is to be vaccinated, reduce your number of sex partners, have mutual monogamy in a relationship and the use of condoms. There are vaccinations for hepatitis B and HPV. While reducing your number of sex partners can aid in preventing the transmission of STDs it is important for you and your partner to be tested and share test results. Being in a long-term mutually monogamous relationship with an uninfected partner is one of the most reliable ways to avoid STDs. Being in a mutually monogamous relationship means that you are sexually active with only one person and that person is only sexually active with you. Correct and consistent use of condoms can also be effective in reducing STD transmission.

If you do contract a STD, it is important to get the appropriate treatment and education from a health care provider. The Monongalia County Health Department offers free confidential STD testing, STD education, and treatment services in partnership with the West Virginia Bureau for Public Health.  The STD program works to prevent the spread and resulting effects of sexually transmitted diseases.