Table of contents:
- Definition
- What is the hepatitis vaccine?
- Hepatitis A
- What are the benefits of the hepatitis A vaccine?
- When is the hepatitis A vaccination schedule?
- Who needs this vaccine?
- Are there any side effects from the hepatitis A vaccine?
- Hepatitis B
- What does the hepatitis B vaccine do?
- When is the hepatitis B vaccination schedule?
- Who needs vaccines?
- What are the side effects of this vaccine?
- Hepatitis C
- Is there a vaccine to prevent hepatitis C?
- Why is the hepatitis C vaccination difficult to develop?
- Hepatitis D
- Is there a hepatitis D vaccine?
- Hepatitis E
- What about hepatitis E vaccination?
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Definition
What is the hepatitis vaccine?
Hepatitis vaccine is one way to prevent transmission of hepatitis. Viral hepatitis is a contagious disease that can cause liver damage. This disease is one of the main causes of serious liver diseases, such as cirrhosis, liver cancer, and liver failure.
Hepatitis transmission can occur from person to person. That is why, the hepatitis vaccination program is used to prevent transmission of the virus and at the same time stop the spread of hepatitis.
Even so, not all types of hepatitis can be prevented by vaccines. So far there are only two hepatitis that can be prevented by vaccination, namely hepatitis A and hepatitis B.
Meanwhile, hepatitis C is just entering the research phase of making injections to prevent the disease, while the other two are not yet available.
Hepatitis A
What are the benefits of the hepatitis A vaccine?
Hepatitis A is a hepatitis disease with a high transmission rate. The reason is, the virus that causes this disease (HAV) easily passes from person to person through consumption of food and drinks.
In addition, hepatitis A transmission can also occur through sexual contact and exposure to feces contaminated by the virus. The presence of the hepatitis A vaccine can reduce the number of cases of this disease.
Even so, hepatitis A outbreaks can still occur among groups of people who are not vaccinated.
When is the hepatitis A vaccination schedule?
Vaccines given to prevent transmission of hepatitis A are formaldehyde-inactive vaccines. WHO recommends that the hepatitis A vaccine be given to infants aged 1 year or older.
In addition, the vaccines were also administered twice, namely when children were under 5 years of age, vaccinations were given at 12 and 23 months of age. For each vaccination, the dose given for children up to 15 years is 0.5 ml.
Meanwhile, adults who have never had the vaccine will be administered twice within 6 months from the first vaccine. The dose given is 1 ml for each vaccine administration.
If it is not clear, please ask your doctor or hospital staff for the right solution.
Who needs this vaccine?
Reporting from the CDC, there are several groups that are recommended to get the hepatitis A vaccine, namely:
- children aged 12 - 23 months,
- children and adolescents aged 2-18 years who have not been vaccinated,
- foreign tourists,
- men who have sex with men,
- users of injectable or non-injectable drugs,
- living with someone infected with hepatitis A,
- workers who are at risk of exposure to hepatitis A virus infection,
- HIV sufferers,
- have a history of chronic liver disease, as well
- people who want to get protection against hepatitis A.
Are there any side effects from the hepatitis A vaccine?
As with other vaccines, after getting the hepatitis A vaccine, you may experience certain health conditions, including:
- pain or redness at the injection site,
- fever,
- headache,
- allergic reactions,
- fatigue, or
- loss of appetite.
In rare cases, some people lose consciousness. That is why you need health workers if you feel dizzy or ringing in your ears after being given the vaccine.
Hepatitis B
What does the hepatitis B vaccine do?
Like other vaccines, the hepatitis B vaccine plays an important role in preventing the spread of the hepatitis B virus (HVB). Hepatitis B is hepatitis which can cause mild to severe symptoms and last a long time.
Some people may not experience severe hepatitis B symptoms, but some people experience serious health problems. In addition, both acute and chronic hepatitis B can transmit the virus to other people.
So that this does not happen to you, take advantage of the vaccine program as a way to prevent this disease.
The hepatitis B vaccine (HepB) contains HBV antigen (HBsAg) which is absorbed in aluminum hydroxide. This HBV antigen will then activate the T cell part of the immune system to control the development of the hepatitis B virus.
Hepatitis B vaccination will later form the immune system in the body that is able to ward off the attack of HVB infection.
When is the hepatitis B vaccination schedule?
Newborn babies are the group that needs to be given the hepatitis B vaccine immediately in less than 12 hours. If the baby is born to a mother infected with hepatitis B, vaccination should be accompanied by hepatitis B immunoglobulin (HBIg).
Furthermore, babies will receive hepatitis B vaccination again after 2 months, 9 months and 15 months of age. Each at that time will be given a dose of 0.5 ml.
For adolescents or adults who have not received the vaccine, they can still get the same protection. However, the vaccination will be carried out 3-4 times with doses ranging from 5-20 mg or the equivalent of 0.5 to 1 ml.
If you have been vaccinated three times, the protection will last up to 20 years or up to a lifetime. Therefore, you do not need to re-vaccinate when you have been vaccinated three times.
Who needs vaccines?
There are a number of groups that have a higher risk of being infected with hepatitis B than others. If you have not received the vaccine, it is advisable to get vaccinated immediately.
Groups at risk of exposure to the hepatitis B virus include:
- living with someone who is infected with hepatitis B,
- having sex with more than one partner in the long term,
- undergoing treatment with a syringe injection,
- men who have sex with other men,
- getting a tattoo or piercing with a needle,
- health workers who are at risk of exposure to blood or body fluids,
- people with chronic diseases, such as kidney disease, HIV infection, or diabetes, and
- tourists visiting areas with high rates of hepatitis B.
What are the side effects of this vaccine?
The hepatitis B vaccine is one of the vaccines that is considered safe and effective to use as an effort to prevent disease. Even so, there are a number of side effects that some people may experience after getting the vaccine, such as:
- skin bruising when injected with the vaccine,
- fever,
- loss of self-awareness (fainting),
- pain in the shoulder after injection, and
- allergic reactions.
The good news, the side effects above are quite rare. However, tell your doctor when you experience disturbing symptoms after being injected with the hepatitis B vaccine.
Hepatitis C
Is there a vaccine to prevent hepatitis C?
Unlike hepatitis A and B, until now there has not been a vaccine for hepatitis C that has been widely circulated. Even so, experts are trying to develop this vaccination for 30 years, precisely when hepatitis C was discovered.
Several of these vaccines have been developed over the last decade and are undergoing limited trials in humans.
Reporting from the Mayo Clinic, researchers are testing vaccine therapy in chronic hepatitis C sufferers. This aims to see if this vaccine can help the body respond to immunity.
This method also determines the level of effectiveness and whether it is safe to use in the future.
Why is the hepatitis C vaccination difficult to develop?
There are two factors that cause hepatitis C vaccine to be difficult to develop.
First, hepatitis C virus is more varied than hepatitis A and B viruses. Hepatitis C consists of seven genotypes with about 60 subtypes. Different genotypes cause infections in different parts of the world, so a global vaccine must be able to protect against all variants of the virus.
Second, the limitations of animal testing. Hepatitis C infection in chimpanzees is indeed similar to infection in humans. However, costs and codes of conduct limit medical research on these animals.
Although vaccinations are still in the development stage, new medications can now be used to treat hepatitis C patients. In addition, you can practice clean behaviors to prevent this disease.
Hepatitis D
Is there a hepatitis D vaccine?
As one of the rare diseases of hepatitis, there is no vaccine that can prevent hepatitis D. However, you can try other alternatives to avoid contracting this disease, namely getting the hepatitis B vaccination.
Hepatitis D only occurs in people who are already infected with hepatitis B. This is because the hepatitis D virus is an incomplete virus. That is why this virus needs an HBV host to replicate.
Unfortunately, vaccinations can only work to protect against hepatitis D when you are not already infected with hepatitis B.
Hepatitis E
What about hepatitis E vaccination?
Hepatitis E is a zoonic disease that is developing and is a serious threat to health, including pregnant women. Until now, there is no specific drug to treat this hepatitis.
That is why, vaccine development is needed to prevent transmission of the hepatitis E virus. So far there have been several vaccination candidates that can fight HEV. However, only vaccines developed by Chinese companies have only recently obtained their own country permits.
Even so, the distribution of the vaccine is only valid in China, so the vaccine that is widely circulated in other countries is not yet available until now.
If you have further questions, please contact your doctor to find the right solution for you.
