What is hepatitis B? What are the risks? What are the benefits of the vaccination and are there any side effects? Let us find answers to all these questions in the following sections.
What type of infection is hepatitis B?
Hepatitis B is a contagious infection of the liver that results due to HBV or the hepatitis B virus. It can range in severity from mild to acute and the infection can last for a few weeks or can become a chronic condition. This virus spreads due to the exposure to secretions or infected blood.
When caught, this infection can cause severe illness and it will take several weeks to recover from.
Normally, our immune system is able to fight and remove the virus, resulting in a complete cure in about ninety-five percent of adults. But, if your immune system is not able to eliminate this virus then you will become chronically infected.
Small children are more susceptible to such chronic infections, at a rate of almost ninety-five percent of infants who are newly infected, compared to just five percent of adults who are newly infected.
Such chronic patients carry hepatitis B virus for several years and suffer from scarring of the liver. If severe scarring takes place then it is known as cirrhosis and can affect the liver’s ability to properly function.
This, in turn, can result in failure of liver or death. In chronic cases, there is a higher risk of liver cancer that is known as hepatocellular carcinoma.
You also need to be aware of the fact that fulminant is a life threatening infection that can occur. However, it only occurs in one percent of all the symptomatic cases.
You can prevent this infection by going to a travel health clinic and receiving the hepatitis vaccine. Let us go through more details about this vaccine in the following sections.
The Vaccine
This vaccine is also sometimes referred to as Recombivax, its trade name and is considered effective in preventing hepatitis B if all 3 doses are taken. However, adolescents (in the eleven to fifteen age group) can follow a 2 dose schedule.
Schedule for Taking the Vaccine
It is important to note that the second dose needs to be administered one month after the first dose. The final dose is to be administered 6 months after the 1st dose.
Who should be getting the hepatitis B vaccine?
Generally, it is recommended that the first dose of the vaccine be given to children at birth with the dosage being completed by the age of six to eighteen months.
Additionally, it is recommended that children should receive the vaccine if they have missed it, and the shot can be administered any time from their infant hood to nineteen years of age.
An adult should visit our vaccination clinic in Montreal to receive this vaccine if he or she is facing a higher risk of this infection (such as when traveling to a different country). The vaccination is also the right option for people who will likely be exposed to this infection in the future.
Who should avoid receiving the hepatitis vaccine?
It is considered a safe vaccine but in some situations doctors at our vaccination clinic in Montreal do not recommend the hepatitis vaccine. A few of the conditions in which you should not receive the vaccination are:
- You underwent an allergic reaction after receiving an earlier dose of the vaccine.
- You already have a hyper-sensitivity to yeast or other components present in the vaccine.
- You are undergoing a severe or moderate illness. In this situation, the vaccination should be postponed until the time your health condition improves.
Is the vaccine effective?
Research shows that vaccination results in long term protection from the virus. It has been noticed that the hepatitis vaccine provides protection for about thirty years in people who received the vaccine before the age of 6 months.
What are the side effects of this vaccine?
Similar to other medications, this vaccine can also result in few side effects. However, it is worth mentioning here that many people do not experience any kind of unwanted side effects. Common problems you will face will be a sore arm because of the injection.
At the time of vaccination, the travel health clinic will provide a pamphlet that will describe side effects which you may experience and require medical attention.
Mild Side Effects
These side effects do not last more than a couple of days and include problems like:
- Headache
- Itching, swelling, or redness at the site of injection
- Dizziness
- A lump or purple spot at the site of injection
- Nausea
- Fatigue
- Stuffy or runny nose
- Agitation or irritability, particularly in children
- 100OF fever
- Sore throat
Severe Side Effects
Severe side effects are usually rare but if you experience them then it will become necessary to consult your doctor. Some of the severe side effects you need to be wary of are:
- Chills
- Back pain
- Joint pain
- Diarrhea
- Itching, particularly in hands or feet
- Movements similar to seizure
- Loss of appetite
- Skin rashes
- Unusual weakness or tiredness
- Pain or cramps in stomach
- Swelling within the nose and the eyes
- Weight loss
- Blurred vision and/or other changes in vision
- Constipation
- Difficulty in swallowing or breathing
- Lightheadedness or faintness while suddenly getting up from sitting or lying down
- Tingling or numbness of legs and arms
- Redness of skin, particularly on arms, neck, face, or ears
- Unusual drowsiness or sleepiness
- Stomach pain or cramps
- Welts or hives that take place weeks after the vaccination is taken
- Pain or stiffness in shoulders or neck
- Sleeplessness
The side effects usually vary from person to person. In case, allergic reactions are noticed or their symptoms then you should consult your physician on an immediate basis. Thus, if there are abnormal physical changes after taking the vaccination then it will be better to consult your doctor.
Is it safe to take the hepatitis vaccine?
As per studies, the risks posed by the virus are more serious compared to the side effects that you may experience due to the hepatitis vaccine.