What Vaccines Do Your Children Need?

There have been many major advances in the development of vaccines for children but it sure gets confusing when school starts to try to keep them straight.

KYW's medical editor Dr. Brian McDonough reports it's getting close to the start of the school year, and you may be wondering 'what types of vaccines does my child need?' Most children get that initial series of vaccine when they are infants, things like the DTP, the OPV. Measles, mumps, rubella is given when they are young.

In addition, hepatitis B and the chicken pox vaccine are given. All of those vaccines, you should have records because there's multiple doses, and there are periods of time that they have to be given. A pediatrician or family physician often has that for you, and with electronic medical records being more prominent, there are other places where you can retrieve them.

As children move along, there are vaccines they need. For instance, if a child is attending the seventh grade this year, they need a dose of tdap, as well as a dose of the meningococcal conjugate vaccine. It sounds confusing, but don't hesitate to call your doctor for help.