Vaccination against hepatitis B for newborns and children of the first year of life. Vaccination of children against hepatitis B: complications and negative consequences. Can newborns be vaccinated against hepatitis?

Why is hepatitis B dangerous?

This is an infectious disease of viral etiology that mainly affects human liver cells. The causative agent is a DNA-containing virus of the same name. There are many clinical forms of infection - from asymptomatic virus carriage to acute icteric variant of hepatitis, chronic course of the disease, cirrhosis and liver cancer, acute or chronic liver failure.

If you look at the statistics, you can find out such terrible figures: there are about 2 billion people in the world, including children, who have markers of this infection, every year about 1 million people die from the consequences of the infection, about 350 million are registered. carriers of the virus. This proves that hepatitis B is by no means a rare pathology, but a very common disease that can affect anyone.

How can you become infected with hepatitis B?

You can become infected with the hepatitis B virus in the following ways:

1. When transfusion of hemocomponents (plasma, red blood cells, platelets, leukomass, etc.) or whole blood;
2. Direct contact with the blood and some other biological fluids of a sick person or virus carrier (injection with a syringe, other medical instruments);
3. Infection through unprotected sexual intercourse;
4. In case of close household contacts in a family where there is a hepatitis patient and an unvaccinated child;
5. The vertical route of transmission is from mother to child (during pregnancy with pathology of the placenta and childbirth).

Hepatitis B vaccination: official opinion

1. Why is the hepatitis B vaccine given to newborns?

The fact is that newborn children have a high risk of complications and the development of chronic infection when infected with hepatitis B due to underdevelopment of the immune system. In addition, not all pregnant women are screened for carriage of the virus, and existing methods for determining it are not 100% accurate. Therefore, the risk that the mother may be a carrier of the infection and pass it on to the baby during childbirth is quite high.

Also, the effectiveness of vaccination will be maximum if it is started from the first days of a child’s life and all terms of revaccinations are observed.

2. Who is eligible for hepatitis B vaccination?

All newborn children are subject to vaccination against hepatitis B (according to the national vaccination schedule). In addition to newborns, vaccination against hepatitis B is recommended for the following population groups (risk groups):

• children born to mothers who have hepatitis or are carriers of the virus;
• patients who receive intravenous infusions of blood components for a long time;
• people who are undergoing program hemodialysis treatment;
• all medical workers, especially manipulation and surgical nurses, surgeons;
• family members who have hepatitis;
• people traveling to a region with an increased incidence of hepatitis B;
• injection drug addicts, people with a large number of casual sexual relationships.

3. What vaccines are available for hepatitis B?

Currently, only genetically engineered vaccines against hepatitis B are allowed for use. They are made by genetically modifying recombinant viral DNA in yeast cells. The hepatitis B virus has several antigens to which a person can develop immunity. All vaccines contain viral envelope surface antigen (HBsAg). It is to this immunogenic component that vaccinated people develop immunity.

Do not be afraid that after vaccination you can become infected with hepatitis. There is no way this can happen. After all, only one antigen of the virus is introduced into the body with the vaccine, and not a full-fledged infectious agent.

Today, 6 vaccines against hepatitis B are registered and approved for use in the Russian Federation. All of them are created by genetic engineering, have the same dose, administration regimen and effectiveness, they are simply produced by different pharmaceutical companies. There are mono-vaccines (only against hepatitis B) and poly-vaccines (protection against several infectious diseases at once).

As a rule, they use the vaccine that was purchased by the medical institution (in most cases they are domestic). This vaccination is given absolutely free of charge. If you want to get vaccinated with an expensive imported vaccine, you will have to pay for it out of your wallet.

3.1 Types of hepatitis B vaccines:

1. The recombinant yeast vaccine against hepatitis B is domestically produced (Combiotech Ltd), most often used in mass vaccinations of children.
2. Engerix-B - produced in Belgium (GlaxoSmithKleine), has 2 varieties that differ in dose (for children and adults).
3. Eberbiovak NV – produced jointly by Cuba and Russia, often used for mass vaccinations.
4. H-B-VAX II - manufactured in the USA, has several doses.
5. Sci-B-Vac - made in Israel.
6. Polyvaccine Bubo-kok (for hepatitis B, whooping cough, diphtheria and tetanus), domestically produced.

Often parents have a question whether it is possible to get the first vaccination with one vaccine, and the next ones with another. It is possible - all registered vaccines are interchangeable, but this should not be done unless absolutely necessary.

4. Hepatitis B vaccination schedules

Since the vaccine contains only one antigen, several vaccinations are necessary to develop immunity (the hepatitis B vaccine does not have strong immunogenicity). There are 2 main vaccination schemes. The first is used in all children who are not at risk for hepatitis. The second is used in children with an increased risk of developing infection.

The standard hepatitis B vaccination schedule is as follows - 0-1-6 months. The first vaccination is given in the maternity hospital, the second - upon reaching the age of one month, and the third - no earlier than 5 months later (at 6 months of life). The same scheme is used for vaccinating older children and adults (the second injection is given a month after the first, and the third – after 5 months). The basic principle is to adhere to the established interval between vaccinations.

Children from a risk group (the mother is sick or is a carrier of hepatitis B, the mother was not examined during pregnancy, there is a hepatitis patient in the family, a child from a disadvantaged family) is vaccinated according to a different schedule: 0-1-2-12 months.

What to do if the scheme is broken? After all, vaccination is often contraindicated, for example, due to an acute illness. In such cases, it is necessary to follow the principle - the minimum time interval between vaccinations is 1 month, the maximum is 4 months for the second injection and 4-18 months for the third. In such cases, complete immunity is formed.

After the first injection, immunity develops in approximately 50% of people, after the second - in 75%, and after the third - in almost 100%. The duration of immune protection has individual characteristics, on average 8-10 years.

5. Method of vaccination against hepatitis B

All hepatitis B vaccines contain aluminum hydroxide. This substance acts as a carrier of the virus antigen. In this regard, all injections must be carried out strictly intramuscularly.

Firstly, when administered subcutaneously, the vaccine composition is adsorbed by fatty tissue and released gradually, which leads to a significant decrease in immunogenicity and the lack of development of full immunity. If the dose is administered subcutaneously by mistake, the vaccination is not considered completed and must be repeated.

Secondly, the penetration of aluminum hydroxide into fatty tissue leads to the development of specific inflammation, which can last for several months. With intramuscular administration, the inflammatory process also develops, but passes much faster.

For children under 3 years of age, an injection is given in the lateral thigh (even in newborns, the muscles of this group are well developed); children over 3 years of age are recommended to inject the vaccine into the deltoid muscle of the shoulder.

6. Hepatitis B vaccination: contraindications

Administration of the hepatitis B vaccine is contraindicated in the following cases:

1. Severe allergic complications with the previous administration of this vaccine (Quincke's edema, anaphylactic shock);
2. Hypersensitivity to any component of the vaccine;
3. Acute illness or exacerbation of chronic pathology;
4. Progressive disease of the nervous system (eg, hydrocephalus, epilepsy);
5. Premature babies (weighing up to 2 kg), upon reaching the specified figure, vaccination is carried out according to the standard schedule.

Parents often confuse side effects and post-vaccination reactions, which are an absolutely physiological response of the body to the introduction of a foreign protein.

Local post-vaccination reactions (in the injection area): pain, redness, itching, infiltration up to 8 cm.

The injection site does not need to be lubricated with medications, scratched, rubbed, etc. After 7-10 days, everything will heal on its own.

Common post-vaccination reactions: short-term disturbance in general health, temperature rise to low-grade levels.

As a rule, such symptoms do not last more than 3 days; if a child has a high fever, then the reason is not the vaccination, perhaps the baby just got sick, which coincided with the vaccination.

6.1 Side effects of hepatitis B vaccination:

1. Allergic complications (Quincke's edema, serum sickness, development of allergic myocarditis, glomerulonephritis, arthritis), allergic skin reactions (urticaria, erythema, dermatitis, etc.), anaphylactic shock;
2. Myalgia;
3. Peripheral neuropathy;
4. Facial and optic nerve palsy;
5. Guillain-Barre syndrome.

These are serious complications that in isolated cases lead to death if medical care is not provided on time.

Note: The information provided above is taken from open sources

Does my child need a hepatitis B vaccine?

A child receives a vaccine against hepatitis B in the first hours after birth. Looking at the haste with which doctors strive to vaccinate a baby who has not yet lived even a day, you wonder what kind of disease is so terrible that the vaccine must be done immediately? Maybe there is an epidemic that is killing hundreds of people and therefore there is no way to delay vaccination?

In fact, there is no epidemic. And this disease (hepatitis B), although serious, is quite rare. The incidence rate in Russia barely reaches 5%. Moreover, this 5% includes those who are carriers of the disease and those who are actually sick. As for mortality, only 1% of those infected die from this disease. So why vaccination then?

If (methods of infection with hepatitis B), then according to the creators of the vaccine themselves, it was developed for a fairly small contingent. These are primarily people who have loved ones contact with a carrier of the virus, through medical instrument unscrupulous medical workers, leading people promiscuity And taking drugs intravenously.

As for hepatitis B vaccination of newborn children, vaccination is indicated for them only if their parents are at risk or have already been infected. Why, then, are all newborns vaccinated in a row, regardless of whether their parents are at risk for hepatitis B or were not even close to this category?

The reason for mass vaccination of newborns is simple. These children are the easiest to reach. People who are truly indicated for this vaccination are unlikely to go for it. No one can force an adult, capable person to inject themselves with something that is not clear. Fortunately, no country has yet thought of compulsory vaccination of adults.

As for children, everything is very simple. It is enough to scare the parents properly, and they themselves will take their children to be vaccinated. Some, of course, resist. True, in the case of vaccination against hepatitis B, no one is interested in the opinion of parents. Judge for yourself, a child is vaccinated just a few hours after his birth.

At this time, parents think about everything, just not about vaccination. In some cases, a woman who has barely recovered from anesthesia is approached for permission to vaccinate her baby. Should she get vaccinated? There is no need to talk about conscious, balanced decision-making in this situation. So it turns out that this vaccination is done practically without the permission of the parents, seeing in every newborn baby a potential threat of the spread of the hepatitis B virus.

Instead of limiting the scope of vaccination, defining its boundaries in accordance with the objective threat of infection and the absence of contraindications, health officials are trying to vaccinate all children without exception. However, given the values ​​of a society where money comes first, nothing should be surprising. Drug sales generate billions in profits. So why fight it?

Is it possible to vaccinate a newborn baby?, this is a special question. Doctors say that only absolutely healthy children can be vaccinated. Therefore, no sane parent will allow a child to be vaccinated if there is even the slightest deviation in his health. Even if a mother is ready to vote with both hands for vaccination, she is unlikely to allow a child with an upset stomach or signs of allergies to be vaccinated. Even a slight runny nose is a reason to postpone vaccination “for later.”

We have already written about general contraindications to vaccination against hepatitis B, but I would like to remind you that this is only official data available in almost any medical brochure. We will try to compile a more comprehensive list of when you should not vaccinate a little later.

In the case of vaccination of children against hepatitis B, one can only guess about the health of an infant who is only a few hours old. By default, a child is considered healthy if no pathologies were detected at birth. No one knows whether the baby has allergies or whether everything is okay with the thymus gland. Therefore, it is impossible to predict the reaction of his body to a foreign substance.

And this despite the fact that in European countries, before vaccination against hepatitis B, the patient is asked whether he is allergic to yeast. If a doctor, knowing about the presence of an allergy, nevertheless vaccinates, he will face legal proceedings, a fine and disqualification. In Russia there is no need to talk about any responsibility of doctors to the patient. The doctor is almost always right. And in the case of vaccination, the doctor is not responsible for the consequences at all.

Important! The information provided on this page is not characterized by an “anti-vaccination” direction and in no way advocates refusal to comply with the vaccination calendar. Our task is to prepare the parent for the correct detailed approach to avoid adverse consequences and reduce the risk of side effects.

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47 comments

Maria - 05/30/2015 06:04

"Side effects:

allergic complications (Quincke's edema, serum sickness, development of allergic myocarditis, glomerulonephritis, arthritis), allergic skin reactions (urticaria, erythema, dermatitis, etc.), anaphylactic shock;
myalgia;
peripheral neuropathy;
paralysis of the facial and optic nerves;
Guillain-Barre syndrome.
These are serious complications that in isolated cases lead to death if medical care is not provided on time.
With objective information about hepatitis B vaccination, you can weigh the pros and cons. The main thing is that your choice is conscious and does not harm the baby or you.”

If so, vaccination should be prohibited. But no choice is offered. At work, they are forced to put everyone on the job under pain of dismissal. This is a violation of human rights, and no one is responsible for anything.

Professor Sharikov - 08/04/2015 11:41

I started reading it with attention, but in the end I realized it was just another piece of propaganda from the anti-vaxxer sect with the usual mantras. No epidemic? Don't get vaccinated - it will happen. And in general, don’t get vaccinated against anything - it’s harmful. Don't take antibiotics - it's chemicals. Don't go to doctors - they're all stupid. Treat yourself with bioenergy, herbs and horse urine. And let the fittest survive. Is that what Mr. Charles Darwin said? Well, let's test his theory in action?

Elena - 08/31/2015 12:35

Good afternoon There are side effects, but no one writes how to treat these side effects. My daughter was vaccinated against hepatitis B (mandatory for admission to university). Now diagnosed with chronic urticaria. The skin becomes blistered, then the skin turns purple and swells. Constant itching of the skin.
and live with it? what to do? what allergen?

Julia - 09/01/2015 15:26

My child was not given this vaccination at the maternity hospital because the necessary vaccine was not available. But even if it were available, I would refuse to give such a hepatitis vaccination to a newborn! At 1 month, a nurse called us and invited us to an “injection.” I admit, I thought for a very long time, weighed it, and decided with a heavy heart to get this vaccination against hepatitis B. Of course, I already regretted it at home, because my daughter had a high fever and began to vomit severely. The child's skin has acquired a yellow tint. I quickly called the pediatrician, she said that this happens and needs to be monitored. But even then I realized that not everything is so simple.
The following vaccinations were complex, imported Infanrix Hexa. Everything went fine, but who can know what consequences there may be in the future... We don’t accept children into kindergarten without vaccinations, so we did them all. We don't want to vaccinate our daughter anymore. An ultrasound showed problems with the liver, they protected themselves, they say.

Maria - 09/01/2015 19:17

According to the law, they do not have the right not to admit children to kindergarten without vaccinations, but here, too, human rights have been violated since childhood.

Yulia replied:
September 1st, 2015 at 22:17

Maria, this is true, but it is very rarely possible to prove it. But at school, vaccinations are not mandatory, which is good news. The main thing is that they don’t do what we did - without asking the parents, they injected the whole class at once...


September 2nd, 2015 at 21:52

Of course, it’s better to cheer with the whole class...

Yulia replied:
September 4th, 2015 at 00:54

What does it mean to “be sick with the whole class”? Hepatitis B? Is this really a disease like the flu?

Maria replied:
September 4th, 2015 at 01:02

This is the meaning of the work of doctors - so that they do not remain without work - otherwise, suddenly, everyone will be healthy without their intervention.

Julia - 09/04/2015 00:56

Although I agree, the disease is truly dangerous, but the quality of the vaccines, their transportation, storage is very confusing...

Professor Sharikov replied:
September 12th, 2015 at 16:26

What's not to like? Any facts?

Tatyana - 12/08/2015 17:42

parents, open your eyes! With vaccinations you kill the child’s immunity even in the maternity hospital! I am a doctor myself. There is a video about vaccinations on the Internet: top secret about vaccinations NTV, 2005, G. Onishchenko - about vaccinations, G. Chervonskaya - about vaccinations. adverse reactions for a long time not a secret.

Natalya - 12/14/2015 23:58

Thank you for the article. I gave my child BCG and hepatitis B, everything was fine. In a month I received another vaccination against Hepatitis B. And then allergies started, all the doctors referred to me that I was eating something wrong. As a result, we still don’t know what kind of allergy this is for our 1.2-year-old baby, he gets a rash to almost all foods and nothing helps.
I regretted a hundred times that I thoughtlessly allowed this poison to be injected into the baby. No more vaccinations at all.

Professor Sharikov replied:
December 19th, 2015 at 22:15

This means that they really ate something wrong and there is no point in pushing your carelessness onto the doctors.

Natalya replied:
December 20th, 2015 at 21:06

Dear Professor Sharikov, if I had listened to doctors all the time, my child would still be on hormonal ointments. Such are the professors, they kept us both on water porridge and on pimafukol for 2 months, until side effects from this ointment began. So there is no need for dirt about the mother’s carelessness. You doctors need to study better so that you can treat people and not hurt people!!!

Tatyana - 08/10/2016 05:04

I’ll share my misfortune: at the age of 19, my son was accidentally diagnosed with hepatitis B. The viral load exceeded all permissible norms by 1000 times, there was no immunity at all, it was a shock for us. We completed a full course of vaccines; how and where this virus could have come from in the body; none of the doctors could answer me then. The child never had any operations or injuries. The treatment is very expensive, which is beyond the reach of a mere mortal, and it is not possible to recover from this disease until complete recovery. You can only reduce the viral load to the maximum permissible norms, and this means living for life on expensive drugs. Believe me, I know what I’m talking about, these are all fairy tales, that hepatitis B can be treated, we have gone through all the circles of this hell. I obtained free treatment for my child with these expensive drugs. From Baraclude to Interferon, but the desired result was not achieved. The viral load drops while you take the drugs, and as soon as you stop it increases rapidly. After all this treatment, they told me, sorry, we can’t help you anymore. We have tried all the drugs that are approved for us. We just have to wait until something new appears in Russia. I took my son for examination to Novosibirsk, having studied the medical history, having carried out a full examination, we came to the conclusion that he had been ill since he was 10 years old (it turned out that it was at this age that we received our first vaccination). The doctor asked me a question: when were you vaccinated, did you have your immune system examined? No one conducts a proper examination here, they only look at the general condition, and as it turns out, this is not enough. It looks like we shouldn’t have had this vaccine at all, but... I thought I was protecting my child. I had long suspected that this crap was given to us with the vaccine, but our doctors unanimously insisted that this couldn’t happen. It is no longer possible to prove this, and it is also no longer possible to prove the opposite. The question arises: why do we need these vaccinations if they don’t help? And why do we have so many tuberculosis patients in our country if we were all given BCG at the maternity hospital? Why do we interfere with the immune system without understanding it? Now I really regret that I treated vaccinations so resignedly and trustingly. So think a thousand times before injecting any shit into your child.

Elena - 09/13/2016 11:49

I can’t tell anyone whether they should get vaccinated or not.
My son was diagnosed with BCG and hepatitis B in the maternity hospital, two months later he was given DPT and off he went - temperature 40, ambulance, intensive care unit, hospitals and eventually attacks of bronchial asthma!!!
While we were in the hospital, tests diagnosed the child with hepatitis C at 3 months, then they said the tests were normal.
One thing I can say is that no one takes responsibility for the consequences. This is already a problem for parents

Velezarius - 12/13/2016 01:58

A strange collection of strange messages - half made up for unknown reasons, and the other half a malicious deception... Dear discussants! I wonder if one of your loved ones receives a serious life-threatening injury, will you also interfere with the doctors’ ability to carry out resuscitation measures? Will you also rant about the dangers of surgery, blood transfusions, and the administration of anti-shock drugs? Or will you trust them?

Hepatitis B vaccination in newborns is recommended to prevent infection. By refusing it, believing that the child cannot become infected, parents are putting the child at risk. The disease is dangerous; about 1 million people die from it every year. Before refusing to vaccinate your child, you need to know the consequences of such a decision.

Features of vaccination in newborns

The hepatitis B vaccine is not mandatory, so sometimes parents refuse to get it. However, in some situations you cannot do without it. Indications for vaccination of a newborn child are:

• the child living in a family where there is a patient with hepatitis;
• the birth of a child from a hepatitis-infected mother;
• lack of data on testing a pregnant woman for the presence of the virus;
• drug addiction of one of the parents.

Vaccination of children against hepatitis takes place in 3 stages, and if the disease is detected in a pregnant woman, the child will need to be vaccinated 4 times, using scheme No. 2. With each subsequent dose, the concentration of the drug increases.

The newborn is vaccinated intramuscularly in the thigh. When administered subcutaneously, the drug is ineffective because it is released gradually. In addition, with this method of administration, inflammation and rashes are possible at the injection site, which do not go away for a long time.

Premature babies weighing less than 2 kg are not vaccinated. It is also contraindicated if signs of immunodeficiency are detected. It is not advisable to vaccinate a baby whose mother has been diagnosed with a yeast allergy, since there is a possibility that the child will inherit it.

Vaccination schedule for infants

The first vaccine is offered to a newborn in the maternity hospital. If the mother approves, it will be placed immediately after birth. If the baby has not received a vaccine in the first days of life, the time of vaccination is selected arbitrarily. After the initial dose is administered, one of the recommended regimens is used, strictly observing the timing of immunization.

Several schemes are used to vaccinate newborns against the hepatitis B virus:

• Standard scheme with intervals 0-1-6. The drug is given for the first time after birth, the second dose - after 1 month, the last dose - after six months. This schedule is most often used for vaccinating children.
• Quick scheme with deadlines 0-1-2-12. The vaccine is given immediately after birth, then 1 month later, 2 months later, and the last dose is administered after a year. This immunization technique is used for children who are at high risk of contracting hepatitis B. It is practiced when an illness is detected in the mother.
• Emergency scheme with intervals 0-7-21-12. The first dose is administered at birth, the second - a week later, the third - after 3 weeks, the fourth - after a year. This technique is used if the child, based on the results of a medical examination, is indicated for urgent surgery.

Sometimes parents violate the recommended hepatitis vaccination schedule. If the second vaccine is missed, when more than 5 months have passed since the previous one, the schedule is resumed. The same principle is followed when skipping the third dose, when the child needs to be vaccinated twice with an interval of 2 months. If a dose is missed, the vaccine should be given again, since the infant’s immunity after the injection is not able to protect for a long period.

The child must receive at least 3 injections. It is permissible to lengthen the interval between them, but it cannot be shortened, since immunity will be defective. The interval between the first and second immunization should be 1 month. If you follow the recommended vaccination schedule, the body will be protected from infection with the hepatitis virus for 22 years.

Possible adverse reactions

In general, hepatitis B vaccination is well tolerated by newborn children; complications are rarely recorded. The injection site may turn slightly red. This symptom goes away on its own a few days after immunization. No additional measures need to be taken.

Your child may be allergic to aluminum hydroxide or other components contained in the drug. Doctors note such a reaction to hepatitis vaccination in newborns in 20% of cases; it manifests itself in the form of rashes. The vaccine is produced using recombinant DNA obtained from yeast. Traces of these organisms remain in the vaccine; sensitivity to them may be increased in children.

After vaccination, the newborn may develop a fever within 8 hours. To eliminate this problem, it is allowed to give him an antipyretic drug recommended by a doctor. When the temperature is high, children should drink a lot of water because they become severely dehydrated. Medical attention is required if the reading exceeds 38.5 degrees.

A small lump may also be felt at the injection site, causing discomfort. In this case, the child cries when bending and straightening the arm, because he experiences severe pain in the muscles. This reaction disappears on its own 2 days after vaccination. The seal appears more often when the vaccine is administered incorrectly to a newborn, when it gets under the skin. As the active substance is released, the severity of this reaction decreases. In this case, the effect of the drug decreases.

If, after the first hepatitis vaccination, the child experiences severe adverse reactions, the next dose of the drug is not given.

In 1% of patients after vaccination against hepatitis B, the following reactions are observed:

• increased sweating;
• diarrhea;
• weakness.

The most severe consequence of the hepatitis B vaccine is anaphylactic shock, caused by hypersensitivity to yeast organisms.

The effect of hepatitis vaccine on the development of multiple sclerosis or other neurological disorders has not been established. Medical studies have not found a connection between them.

Complications are most severe when the vaccine is first administered. The body responds more easily to each subsequent dose. All side effects are observed for a short time and pass quickly.

How to avoid side effects

Side effects after vaccination of a newborn against hepatitis are rarely detected and often go away on their own. This vaccination is considered absolutely safe. The most common reaction is redness of the skin in the injection area.

If the vaccine is administered incorrectly, undesirable reactions intensify. Parents need to make sure that the nurse in the vaccination room administers the injection correctly. It is done in the thigh, since this muscle is best developed in newborns. If the drug gets subcutaneously, the baby will develop a lump that will become inflamed. Therefore, it is important that immunization is carried out by a specialist.

Hepatitis immunization is prohibited for children who have recently had respiratory illnesses. The vaccine can be administered only after complete recovery.

Mandatory conditions for vaccination are:

• lack of temperature;
• no allergies;
• absence of infections in the acute stage.

If a newborn child has had meningitis, the vaccine is given no earlier than 6 months after recovery.

The likelihood of side effects in children is reduced if there are no contraindications to vaccination.

Conclusion

The hepatitis B vaccine is well tolerated in children. As clinical studies have shown, the danger of vaccination is greatly exaggerated. It rarely causes side effects even in infants. To prevent the development of the disease, you need to adhere to a certain immunization algorithm developed by doctors. It is advisable not to miss the planned vaccination, otherwise if there is a prolonged delay, you will have to start vaccination again.

Reviews: 17

Viral hepatitis remains one of the most unpredictable liver diseases today. It is difficult to predict how severely a person will endure this infection and how this dangerous disease will end. Any liver damage, as is known, affects not only the functioning of the digestive system, but also serious irreversible changes occur in the entire body.

Is hepatitis B vaccination mandatory today or not? Perhaps it would be easier to refuse another injection and not injure the baby from the first hours of life? Who needs such vaccinations and what are the dangers of refusing immunization?

Why is the hepatitis B vaccine necessary?

This is a serious disease, often leading to death. No, no one dies immediately after infection. But after an acute illness, any outcome is steps towards death. With hepatitis B, from 6 to 15% of cases end in the disease becoming a chronic process, which occurs with numerous complications, including liver cancer. In severe cases, this gland cannot cope, and treatment does not help. Therefore, vaccination is the only way to protect a person from the consequences of the disease. The hepatitis B vaccine protects babies immediately after birth. Why is it so important to get vaccinated in the first hours of life?

1. The earlier a person has had this infection, the greater the likelihood that the disease will progress to the chronic stage - in older people this probability is only about 5%, in children under 6 years of age in 30% of cases the disease becomes chronic. Vaccination helps the body, as protective antibodies are produced in response to its administration.
2. The hepatitis B virus skillfully adapts to many living conditions - it can withstand temperatures of 100 ºC for several minutes, at a temperature of minus 20 ºC it does not lose its activity even if re-frozen, and persists at low pH values ​​(2.4).
3. The disease often occurs together with viral hepatitis D, which in most cases ends in cirrhosis.

When is the hepatitis B vaccine given? - if there are no contraindications, vaccination is carried out in the first 12 hours after the birth of the baby. For many parents, such early prevention only causes indignation - why injure a child with vaccination so early, because his immune system has not yet been formed? But there is clear scientific justification for this.

1. The hepatitis B virus is transmitted parenterally (this is the main route of infection) - during surgical interventions, taking blood for tests, blood transfusions, plastic surgery, dental procedures, and after visiting a nail salon. Vaccination protects in any situation.
2. It is possible to transmit the virus from a pregnant mother to her child.
3. Scientists have found that in a large number of cases, people carry hepatitis B without classic signs, or there are asymptomatic carriers.
4. A child needs a vaccine against hepatitis B in the first hours of life, since it can be infected from loved ones, and there is no seasonality in the development of the disease, which worsens the diagnosis.

Vaccination is necessary, because the hepatitis B virus has not yet disappeared from the face of the earth. It is estimated that more than 350 people around the world have this disease, but there are many more carriers. The danger is that just 1 ml of blood contains a huge amount of the pathogenic hepatitis B virus and it is stable in most liquids. Infection can occur at any time, and an ideal effective treatment still does not exist.

Who gets vaccinated against hepatitis B?

If a person has had a mild form of hepatitis without serious consequences, specific indicators are detected in his blood, one of them is HbsAg. It appears 1–4 weeks after infection. If, a year after the disease was transmitted, it is still detected, and the amount remains at the same level, this indicates that the process is chronic or the person is a carrier of the virus.

Why is this so important and how does it relate to vaccines?

1. The disease does not appear immediately.
2. It will take a long time before a diagnosis is made.
3. After treatment, the virus can circulate in the blood for a long time.

There is a high probability of contracting the virus and children are most susceptible to the disease. Therefore, newborns need vaccination against hepatitis B first of all. No other way has yet been invented to protect children immediately after birth from hepatitis B.

In what cases is vaccination vital?

How many times in your life should you be vaccinated against hepatitis B? - there is no specific quantity. There is a minimum required - a standardized number of vaccinations and revaccinations. Everything else is done based on the evidence, which, in turn, depends on many circumstances:

• the number of vaccinations depends on where the person works;
• where he lives;
• Are your loved ones healthy?
• Are there any business trips to foreign countries? In this case, additional vaccinations are given.

Vaccination schedule for hepatitis B vaccinations

What is the hepatitis B vaccine schedule? - there are several of them.

How long does the hepatitis B vaccine last? - a full four-course course is enough until the child reaches adulthood. Then revaccination is recommended every five years - the protection does not last longer. But repeated vaccinations are not indicated for everyone. If desired, a person can be vaccinated independently for a fee.

Composition of the hepatitis vaccine and routes of its administration

The hepatitis B vaccine includes:

Hepatitis B vaccines are produced using genetic engineering. Some manufacturers do not include preservatives in their vaccines.

Vaccines are available in 0.5 ml or 1 ml dosages, which contain the corresponding number of units of the surface antigen of the virus. A single dose up to 19 years of age is usually 0.5 ml; for older groups it is doubled, that is, equal to 1 ml. Those on hemodialysis are given a double dosage: adults 2 ml, children 1 ml.

Where is the hepatitis B vaccine given? - The vaccine is administered intramuscularly. Children are vaccinated in the anterolateral (in medicine you can hear anterolateral) area of ​​the thigh. Why exactly this place? - in case of a reaction to the vaccine, it is easier to carry out manipulations here. Adults and adolescents are vaccinated in the deltoid muscle. Vaccination is carried out at any age.

There is no need to vaccinate people who have had hepatitis B or who are carriers of HbsAg. But if they are vaccinated, it will not cause harm and there will be no exacerbation of the disease.

Before vaccination, you need to carefully inspect the vaccine bottle to ensure that there are no foreign impurities after shaking. Please note where the nurse will get the vaccine from - it cannot be frozen.

What to do before and after hepatitis B vaccination

These are important points that are not observed in most cases, but they determine how easily a person will tolerate the hepatitis B vaccine.

The body's reaction in children and adults to hepatitis B vaccination

Modern vaccines are so well made that complications and reactions of the body to them are extremely rare. What adverse reactions can there be to the hepatitis B vaccine?

There are no pronounced clinical manifestations of the hepatitis B vaccine - almost any vaccine is well tolerated, and reactions to it are observed in rare cases. They often occur when the rules for transporting ampoules with the active substance are not followed or when a person behaves incorrectly after vaccination. Sometimes a reaction may develop not to the first injection, but to the second or third vaccination against hepatitis B. In this case, it is necessary to exclude intolerance to the substances included in the vaccine.

Contraindications to hepatitis B vaccination

To obtain a medical exemption from vaccination, you need good reasons. There are temporary and permanent contraindications for immunization.

Hepatitis B vaccines

After all of the above, all that remains is to decide on the choice of vaccine. There are many of them, and they are improving every year. The most commonly used vaccines on the medical market are:

Which vaccine for hepatitis B should I choose? The one purchased by medical institutions is quite sufficient. All vaccinations are well tolerated. But if there is a reaction to the first vaccination, it is better to replace the next one. It is important to consult in advance with specialists who often work with vaccinations.

Is vaccination against hepatitis B necessary? Now this question seems irrelevant. It is better to be fully vaccinated in childhood than to deal with the consequences of a severe infection. If it is not the vaccination itself that is scary, but the possible consequences or reactions to the hepatitis B vaccine in a child, then it is important to prepare for it in advance by asking a specialist about it.

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How long can you fool people and inject this crap?

Lena, could you please explain what exactly the deception is?

Lena simply did not encounter this problem... when you come close, you’ll run to get vaccinated...

After vaccination, my husband was diagnosed with hepatitis of unknown etiology. Now let's treat hepatitis.

Why is there no word about administering the vaccine to newborns who develop jaundice after birth?

Why are they not interested in the health of the newborn? Probably it is simply impossible to determine it, the child is small, no observations have been made.
This means there is no need to poke him. Let him first learn to drink water. For someone - to be baptized)
And if the child is allergic to protein or etc. then a child can roll out his eyes or find out by the age of 25-30 that he has multiple sclerosis.
The fontanelle is pulsating—the brain is aching from the injections. Children who were not vaccinated in the maternity hospital simply have a soft “window” of bones that have not healed. Nothing swells there. Then they sit and crawl and get to their feet without spasticity... PROVEN!
Just don't forget to wash your hands. Well, when you come home from the door, change your clothes;

Alexander, Maria, what kind of enchanting nonsense are you writing? Jaundice in newborns has nothing to do with the hepatitis B vaccine. I wonder how you can explain its manifestation in newborns before this vaccine became available? Multiple sclerosis is not a consequence of vaccinations. Read authoritative medical sources (PubMed for example), and not pseudoscientists like Kotok and Chervonskaya. Vaccines have been studied, side effects and complications have been described millions of times. What does fontanel have to do with it???!!! What did you check? What is swelling in vaccinated children???!!! My child was vaccinated according to schedule, nothing was swollen, he sat up, crawled, and stood on his feet perfectly. I was not vaccinated as a child, I had whooping cough, measles and all with complications (bilateral pneumonia, pyelonephritis, etc.). Now I don’t go to nail salons, because... In my time there was no vaccination against hepatitis B, but I can’t do it myself (I’m constantly sick, the consequences of REFUSING vaccinations).

Is the fontanelle pulsating?? What a nightmare!!! This is just terrible, and this is precisely from the vaccine??? Yes, Alexander? It’s strange, but normal people, not false doctors, say that this is normal, because the blood flows in the veins and the heart pumps it. It's bad when it doesn't pulsate. Anna, I also heard this nonsense about yellow children myself, in the intensive care unit of the maternity hospital, when the mother alone refused to be vaccinated because her first child was yellow. It’s as if people have slipped back into the 16th century, they are afraid of vaccinations!!! And if a rabid dog bites you, or you step on a rusty nail, will you also wash it with soap and everything will go away?? No, run and get vaccinated against tetanus and rabies, otherwise it’s a disaster. Plantain won't help.

It is very convenient to take care of your children and not vaccinate them when all the other children around are vaccinated!!! Yes, if no one vaccinated their children, the plague would have returned by now.

We cannot force vaccinations, but we can silently accept a parent's refusal to vaccinate. A child dies from pneumonia caused by the influenza virus and a mandatory investigation begins, because... There are doctors, there are vaccines, there is an understanding about infections, how to save yourself from them, and we need to find out why. They open the child’s medical card, and there on the first page is the mother’s refusal to vaccinate everyone in general, and especially against the flu... And there are no questions left, we quietly put the card in the archive.

Hepatitis is an infectious liver disease that can threaten a person from the moment of his birth. To ensure that the risk of disease is minimal in the future, newborn children are vaccinated against hepatitis.

This procedure is considered mandatory immunization and parents should not refuse it, especially those whose children are at risk. Newborns are most susceptible to hepatitis virus attack because:

• The virus can be transmitted from mother to child during the birth of the baby.
• Newborns have not yet developed an immune system that can fully resist viruses.

A hepatitis vaccination is the administration of a vaccine to a healthy person in order to induce immunity to this virus. The drug is a solution with low concentrations of pathogenic pathogens, as well as their antibodies obtained artificially.

At the moment, a special vaccine has been developed only for such forms of viral liver damage as hepatitis A and B.

Viral hepatitis B is considered one of the most unpredictable liver diseases. It is impossible to predict how hard a person will endure this infection and how this disease will end, because any damage to the gland affects not only its work, but also provokes irreversible changes in the entire body.

Hepatitis B is a dangerous disease that is difficult to fight. It entails:

• Liver dysfunction.
• Stagnation of bile in the hepatic ducts.
• Fibrosis of gland tissue.
• Cirrhosis and liver cancer.

The disease greatly affects the quality of life:

• Sleep is disturbed.
• Loss of efficiency and clarity of consciousness.
• There is no vital energy.

Most children under 3 years of age, in whose bodies the virus has settled, become chronically ill. And for an infected newborn and child under 1 year old, the chronic form of hepatitis B is 100% guaranteed.

Due to the complexity of the disease and the desire to protect children from a similar fate, there is a need for its prevention. For many years, in world medical practice, in order to prevent infection, special injections - vaccinations - have been introduced in the first hours of a child’s life.

All newborns are given the first dose of the vaccine in the maternity hospital. This helps the baby not only not to get sick, but also not to become a chronic carrier of this virus. In Russia, vaccination against hepatitis B is included in the national vaccination calendar and is mandatory.

When are newborns vaccinated against hepatitis?

To create lasting immunity, the vaccine must be administered repeatedly into the child’s body. If there are no contraindications, the child is vaccinated in three stages:

• A few hours after birth.
• At 3 months.
• At 6 months.

If a child was born from a mother who is a carrier of this virus (who previously had hepatitis B or during pregnancy), then he is vaccinated according to a different scheme:

• 12-24 hours after birth.
• At 1 month.
• At 2 months.
• At 1 year.

In order for children’s immunity to the pathogen to be fully formed, it is recommended not to deviate from standard vaccination regimens. However, in case of illness of the baby, it is allowed to shift the dates, but no more than a month for 1 and 2 doses, and no more than 6 months for the third vaccine.

Contraindications

There are contraindications for hepatitis B vaccination. It is not given if:

• The baby was born weighing less than 1,500 g. When the baby has gained weight, usually by 2 months, he will receive the vaccine.
• The child has a severe intrauterine infection.
• The child was diagnosed with dysfunction of internal organs and severe developmental pathologies. Once the child’s condition has stabilized and his health has improved, he can be vaccinated.
• In healthy children, mild malaise is observed - fever, stool disorders. Only a few weeks after recovery is the vaccine allowed to be administered.

Preparations for vaccination

For vaccination of newborns, drugs of Russian and foreign production, registered in the Russian Federation, are used. In composition, they are all almost identical and are produced using similar technology.

Today, the hepatitis B vaccine is an affordable, effective and only way to protect a child from the disease. The following drugs are used for this purpose:

• Combiotex LTD – yeast liquid vaccine for mass vaccinations, produced in the Russian Federation.
• Eberbiovac is a drug jointly produced by medical concerns of Cuba and the Russian Federation.
• Engerix B is a vaccine jointly produced by Belgium and Russia, available in pediatric and adult dosages.
• H-B-Vax II nbsp is an American vaccine.
• Bubo-kok is a combined drug for hepatitis B and DTP from Russian manufacturers, widely used both in public clinics and paid offices.
• Euvax B is a vaccine produced in Korea and France, produced in dosages that are acceptable only from 15 years of age.

Russian vaccines, despite their lower cost, are not inferior in quality to their imported counterparts.

All of the vaccines listed are safe and equally effective, and therefore the schemes for their use are similar. After a course of vaccinations, the required amount of antibodies remains in the body for at least 8 years and perfectly protects against hepatitis infection.

Vaccinations are given free of charge at the children's clinic with vaccines purchased by this institution. As a rule, all vaccinations according to the scheme are given with the same drug, although there are exceptions - vaccines from different manufacturers are given. In any case, the frequency of reactions from vaccination remains standard.

Hepatitis vaccination for newborns and possible side effects

Most children experience a reaction at the injection site, including mild redness, swelling, and hardening of the skin at and around the puncture site. This is explained by the fact that the vaccine component, aluminum hydroxide, enhances the immune response to the vaccine, causing these symptoms.

In some cases, vaccination gives the following adverse reactions:

• Hyperexcitability, moodiness, tearfulness.
• Slight physical weakness.
• Increased sweating.
• Frequent loose stools.

An increase in body temperature in a child after this vaccination is very rare and accounts for no more than 5% of all children.

All these symptoms are considered normal and should not cause any concern to parents. 2-3 days after vaccination they disappear without a trace.

If a newborn reacts more sharply to vaccination and has swollen lymph nodes and vomiting, he is given symptomatic care and subsequently examined more carefully before the next vaccination, and if the need arises, vaccination is canceled.

Possible complications

It is extremely rare - in 1/100,000 children - hepatitis vaccination leads to serious complications. These are reactions such as:

• Rash or hives.
• Erythema nodosum is an inflammation of blood vessels and subcutaneous fat.
• Anaphylactic shock.

To avoid dangerous consequences, preservatives were excluded from the vaccine composition or their concentration was minimized, leaving only the necessary components:

• Viral protein (contains no impurity.)
• Aluminum hydroxide (booster of own immunity).
• Merthiolate (maintains long-term activity of the drug).

None of the listed components of the vaccine, contrary to rumors, is the cause of serious neurological diseases in children. These data are confirmed by medical research, as well as the fact that if all vaccination measures are followed - high-quality vaccines and adherence to the vaccination schedule, there are no complications in children.

Some changes at the injection site may occur if the baby is bathed immediately after vaccination. Contact with water is not dangerous, but it may lead to some additional skin reactions. Therefore, pediatricians advise not to bathe the child or simply not to wet the vaccination site for a week after vaccination.

Should a newborn child be vaccinated against hepatitis?

The reaction to vaccination in each child depends on his individuality and it is almost impossible to predict it accurately. The consequences of vaccinations have not been fully studied and it is not possible to link vaccination with any changes in the development of a child.

Hepatitis B vaccines are made by modifying viral DNA in yeast cells. Only similar genetically engineered vaccines containing the surface antigen of the virus envelope are approved for use. A person must develop immunity to it as a result of vaccination.

No one can force parents to vaccinate their child, and by signing a waiver of vaccination, they take responsibility for the future health of the child.

And although this will not affect the child’s further adaptation in society (admission to kindergarten, school, classes in sections, military service), parents, when making such decisions, must thoroughly weigh all the pros and cons.

The medical community advocates vaccination, arguing its position with the following arguments:

• The hepatitis B virus is spreading to epidemic proportions. Vaccination in this case provides a guarantee to avoid the disease or suffer from it in a mild form.
• It is newborn children, due to an imperfect, underdeveloped immune system, who are at great risk of all kinds of complications and the development of the disease according to a negative scenario.
• There is a great risk that during childbirth the mother infects her newborn, not knowing that she is a carrier of the virus, since screening of pregnant women is not 100% accurate in detecting it.
• The disease easily becomes chronic, which provokes dangerous complications such as cirrhosis and liver cancer. For children, such complications are fraught with disability and can lead to death.
• The chronic form of hepatitis destroys the child's immune system, making the body vulnerable to other diseases, sensitive to various types of allergens. In vaccinated children, such problems are much less common.

Despite all the desire and confidence of parents that they can protect their child from potential danger, they do not have the opportunity to keep the child in a closed, sterile space. A child can catch the virus in the external environment, accidentally coming into contact with someone else’s blood in the hospital, during an unsuccessful fight, or a minor wound from an unknown object on the street.

No one is immune from infection, but vaccinated children, even if infected, will survive the disease easily and will not develop the insidious chronic form of hepatitis B.

And at the same time, there are many doubting parents who are inclined to believe that vaccination against hepatitis B is unnecessary and even harmful because:

• In their opinion, newborns are not in danger - they are not at risk.
• The effect of the vaccine in a child can be unpredictable, since adverse reactions have not yet been thoroughly studied.
• Infants are vaccinated without taking into account individual intolerance to the drug.
• The vaccination is forced in the maternity hospital, since the mother is still in a stressful state after giving birth and cannot adequately perceive the danger of vaccination.
• Vaccination of newborns has no scientific basis and is the result of a commercial conspiracy between vaccine manufacturers and medical officials for the purpose of profit.

But there are cases in which vaccination is vital:

• If the baby requires a blood transfusion.
• If there is a patient with hepatitis B or a carrier of the virus in the family.
• If there is contact with infected blood.
• If the newborn lives in an area with a high incidence of the disease.
• If the mother is a carrier of the virus.
• If the child is traveling to a country where there is a possibility of contact with vectors or sick persons.

Where are newborns vaccinated against hepatitis?

Newborns are vaccinated in the upper part of the shoulder or thigh, where there is enough muscle to puncture and inject the entire volume of the drug, after which it immediately enters the bloodstream.

The baby’s buttocks are not suitable for this purpose - there is a lot of subcutaneous fat here, which reduces the effectiveness of the vaccination to a minimum. Also, due to the concentration of blood vessels and nerve endings in this area, there is a risk of injury.

If there is redness or slight inflammation at the puncture site, this is considered normal and does not require the use of lotions, compresses or ointments. This is an acceptable reaction to the vaccine and is considered normal.