What is prophylactic vaccination?

prophylactic vaccination is a selective exposure of a weakened or diluted form of an infectious agent to stimulate the patient to create antibodies. If the patient is exposed to the infectious agent in the wild, antibodies prevent the onset of infection. Many conditions can be prevented by vaccination. Eliminating and reducing preliminary vaccines such as polio and smallpox was an important victory for public health.

In prophylactic vaccination, the aim is to prevent the development of the disease. This contrasts with the therapeutic vaccine used in the treatment of the disease. Therapeutic applications are most commonly observed in cancer treatment, where the patient can receive a targeted vaccine to help the body attack a cancer tumor. Such vaccines are beneficial for treatment, but do not serve long -term object prevention. Some vaccines cannot be generally administered because they represent risks; For example, children with cancer cannot receive routine vaccination because their immune systems will not be able to createantibodies and could be very ill. Conditions such as measles, mumps, tetanus and rubella are commonly prevented by vaccination.

Further prophylactic vaccination can only be recommended if people are particularly high risk of disease. Older adults and people with a history of respiratory disease can obtain vaccines against influenza to avoid influenza -related deaths. Likewise, travelers can get other vaccines to protect them from diseases that are normally not in their homeland. A similar procedure can be seen in the army where members of the service receive vaccines before deployment to keep them healthy in the field.

In some cases, it is also possible to receive the professional contract of CTIC after exposure to the infectious agent to prevent the onset of a full -fledged disease. Rabies is a common candidate for this type of vaccination. Against rabies vaccines can be expensive and time -consuming, andTherefore, they are not recommended for the normal population. If a person is bitten by an animal and there are concerns about the risk of rabies, the patient may receive prophylactic vaccination.

Recommendations for prophylactic vaccination are regularly updated. Patients may discuss which vaccines they need or can benefit from their doctors. It is also important to keep up with strengthening shots because the vaccines do not last throughout their lives and outdated vaccination does not have to provide protection. Patients who are not sure of the last time they were vaccinated could apply for a copy of their record.