As a parent, you must be worried if your little one has health problems, including pneumonia. Therefore, preventive measures need to be taken to protect pneumonia in children. One of them is by giving the PCV vaccine .
A study stated that there were around 1,601 cases of acute respiratory infection (ARI) in children within a period of 12 months in Yogyakarta. Of the 1,601 cases, 96 of them were pneumonia and 7 cases were classified as severe pneumonia.
The two diseases are reported to mostly attack children under 2 months of age. There are several factors that can make a child susceptible to pneumonia, including frequent inhalation of cigarette smoke or being passive smokers and not getting complete immunizations.
PCV Vaccine for Pneumonia
When a new baby is born, he is protected from bacterial and viral infections because he still has antibodies from his mother. However, these antibodies only last for a few months. Once the number of antibodies is reduced, the bodies of infants and children will be more susceptible to infections, including pneumonia.
Pneumonia can be caused by infection with the bacterium Streptococcus pneumoniae ( S. pneumoniae ).
In order for children to avoid this bacterial infection, parents are recommended to take their children to the nearest vaccine clinic or hospital to get the PCV vaccine ( pneumococcal conjugate vaccine ) when the child is 7-12 months old.
Vaccination is done from an early age because the immune system of children at that age is not yet perfect and is not strong enough to fight infection.
The PCV vaccine is given 4 times, namely when children are 2, 4, and 6 months old, and with a repeat or booster vaccine at 12-15 months of age. However, for children who have never received the PCV vaccine, the vaccination schedule recommended by the Indonesian Pediatric Association is as follows:
- For children aged 7-12 months, the vaccine is given 2 times with an interval of 1-2 months. Furthermore, the booster vaccine is given after the child is 12 months old with a distance of at least 2 months from the previous vaccine.
- For children aged 1-2 years, the PCV vaccine is given 2 times with a distance of 2 months.
- For children aged 2-5 years, the types of vaccines used are PCV10 and PCV13 vaccines. The PCV10 vaccine is given 2 times with a minimum interval of 2 months, while the PCV13 vaccine is given 1 time.
Giving the PCV vaccine is very important, not only to prevent pneumonia in your child, but also to protect other children who have not received the vaccine. Thus, the number of cases of pneumonia in children can be reduced.
To find out the schedule for giving the pneumonia vaccine according to your child's age and condition, consult a doctor . Let's prevent pneumonia in children by giving your child the PCV vaccine according to the doctor's advice.
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