Local News
>
News
>
Local News
Fort Dodge area shows high rates for vaccinations
Adult vaccines down nationwideBy SARAH GENGLER . Messenger staff writer and ASSOCIATED PRESS
POSTED: January 24, 2008
A survey by the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases found that aside from the flu, many adults are not receiving some of the new vaccinations out there to help prevent certain diseases.
Shingles, whooping cough and the human papillomavirus are diseases that plague different people of all different ages. Although vaccinations are down nationwide, Fort Dodge has seen an increase in patients being vaccinated.
‘‘Most parents with kids are on top of (vaccinations),’’ said Dr. Lincoln Wallace from Trimark Physicians Group.
Men and women over the age of 60, who have had chicken pox, are more prone to getting shingles but can now receive a vaccine to help prevent it.
‘‘Anyone who knows someone who has had shingles or who has had them is getting the vaccine,’’ said Wallace. ‘‘We’re getting calls for that from people we’re not seeing for any other reason.’’
Only about 2 percent of Americans 60 and older received the vaccine in its first year of sales, yet there are more than 1 million new cases each year.
‘‘We have some people asking for it, especially if they have grandkids at home so they don’t pass on the shingles virus,’’ said Krystal Crotts, clinic manager and an LPN with Community Health Center of Fort Dodge.
Children are vaccinated for whooping cough at a very young age, but the vaccine tends to start wearing off around age 10.
‘‘Most cases we see are around ages 10 to 12 for a booster shot,’’ Wallace said. ‘‘That is a smaller group and we haven’t had a whooping cough scare in a couple of years.’’
Most of the time kids are updated when they receive a tetanus shot because Pertussis, the whooping cough vaccine, can be found in the tetanus vaccine, according to Crotts. Each person seeing a doctor at the Community Health Center have their immunization records reviewed so that vaccinations can be updated.
Approximately 2 percent of adults ages 18 to 24 got a booster shot against whooping cough in the two years since it hit the market according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. People can recover from whooping cough, but it can take weeks and is easily spread to children who have not yet been vaccinated.
Gardasil is the new vaccine for HPV, which can cause cervical cancer in women, but only 10 percent of woman ages 18 to 26 have received at least one dose of the three-shot series.
‘‘Women ages 9 to about 25 can receive the vaccine and it cuts down the chance of getting cervical cancer by approximately 90 percent,’’ Wallace said. ‘‘Unfortunately, it’s an age group we don’t see that often but when we do, yes, they are getting it.’’
Most of the vaccines are costly, running up to $300 dollars for the three-shot series Gardasil, but some of them can be partially paid for through insurance or other assistance programs.
Contact Sarah Gengler at (515) 573-2141 or sgengler@messengernews.com
Shingles, whooping cough and the human papillomavirus are diseases that plague different people of all different ages. Although vaccinations are down nationwide, Fort Dodge has seen an increase in patients being vaccinated.
‘‘Most parents with kids are on top of (vaccinations),’’ said Dr. Lincoln Wallace from Trimark Physicians Group.
Men and women over the age of 60, who have had chicken pox, are more prone to getting shingles but can now receive a vaccine to help prevent it.
‘‘Anyone who knows someone who has had shingles or who has had them is getting the vaccine,’’ said Wallace. ‘‘We’re getting calls for that from people we’re not seeing for any other reason.’’
Only about 2 percent of Americans 60 and older received the vaccine in its first year of sales, yet there are more than 1 million new cases each year.
‘‘We have some people asking for it, especially if they have grandkids at home so they don’t pass on the shingles virus,’’ said Krystal Crotts, clinic manager and an LPN with Community Health Center of Fort Dodge.
Children are vaccinated for whooping cough at a very young age, but the vaccine tends to start wearing off around age 10.
‘‘Most cases we see are around ages 10 to 12 for a booster shot,’’ Wallace said. ‘‘That is a smaller group and we haven’t had a whooping cough scare in a couple of years.’’
Most of the time kids are updated when they receive a tetanus shot because Pertussis, the whooping cough vaccine, can be found in the tetanus vaccine, according to Crotts. Each person seeing a doctor at the Community Health Center have their immunization records reviewed so that vaccinations can be updated.
Approximately 2 percent of adults ages 18 to 24 got a booster shot against whooping cough in the two years since it hit the market according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. People can recover from whooping cough, but it can take weeks and is easily spread to children who have not yet been vaccinated.
Gardasil is the new vaccine for HPV, which can cause cervical cancer in women, but only 10 percent of woman ages 18 to 26 have received at least one dose of the three-shot series.
‘‘Women ages 9 to about 25 can receive the vaccine and it cuts down the chance of getting cervical cancer by approximately 90 percent,’’ Wallace said. ‘‘Unfortunately, it’s an age group we don’t see that often but when we do, yes, they are getting it.’’
Most of the vaccines are costly, running up to $300 dollars for the three-shot series Gardasil, but some of them can be partially paid for through insurance or other assistance programs.
Contact Sarah Gengler at (515) 573-2141 or sgengler@messengernews.com
Share:
Facebook
MySpace
Digg
Stumble
Mixx
Fark
del.icio.us
LiveSpaces