How old is the polio vaccine

Polio eradication in UP - Zero Resistance. Polio eradication in UP - Religious Leaders. Polio eradication in UP - Moving Populations. Polio eradication in UP - mobilizing children. Polio eradication in UP - Empowering Women. Polio eradication in UP - Community Influencers. History of Polio. As with any medicine, there is a very remote chance of a vaccine causing a serious injury or death.

The safety of vaccines is always being monitored. All 50 states and the District of Columbia DC have state laws that require children entering childcare or public schools to have certain vaccinations. There is no federal law that requires this. CDC recommends that all children get four doses of inactivated polio vaccine IPV , with one dose at each of the following ages:. All children who have received three doses of IPV before age 4 years should receive a fourth dose at 4 to 6 years of age before or at school entry.

For more information, see State Vaccination Requirements. Most health insurance plans cover the cost of vaccines. However, you may want to check with your insurance provider before going to the doctor. Learn how to pay for vaccines. This program helps families of eligible children who might not otherwise have access to vaccines.

You can also contact your state VFC coordinator. Skip to content. The inactivated polio vaccine or IPV is now the only vaccine given in the United States to prevent polio. IPV is given as a series of four shots at 2 months, 4 months, 6 to 18 months, and again at 4 to 6 years of age. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt, paralyzed by polio, was confined to a wheelchair for most of his adult life.

President Roosevelt caught polio when he was in his late 30s. Only about 1 in 10 people who were paralyzed by polio recovered — most were confined to wheelchairs or iron lungs a large machine to help breathing for the rest of their lives.

Polio is caused by a virus and is highly contagious. It affects people differently — some don't feel sick at all, others complain of anything from a sore throat to fever, stomach pain or vomiting, stiff neck or headache. The virus does its damage by first replicating, or reproducing, itself in the intestines, then traveling through the bloodstream where it can infect the brain and spinal cord.

Paralysis caused by polio occurs when the virus replicates in and attacks the nervous system. Polio vaccine has been available since The inactivated polio vaccine IPV was available first, given as a shot, in A more convenient form, called oral polio vaccine OPV , was given as liquid drops via the mouth. It was developed in The first polio vaccine was available in the United States in Thanks to widespread use of polio vaccine, the United States has been polio-free since But poliovirus is still a threat in some countries.

It takes only one traveler with polio to bring the disease into the United States. The best way to keep the United States polio-free is to maintain high immunity protection in the U. Vaccine recommendations and contraindications; composition, dosage, and administration; handling and storage.

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