Tetanus is a potentially deadly illness that causes painful tightening of the muscles and locking of the jaw. Diphtheria is an infection of the throat that can lead to breathing problems, paralysis, heart failure, and death.

How often should you be vaccinated? Every 10 years following your first series of three injections. However, if you have a dirty cut or wound, you may need a booster shot sooner (five years from your last shot). Children and adults; children should be assessed at ages 11-12 and immunized if they have not been immunized in the last 5 years.

What are the precautions and contraindications? Persons with a neurologic or severe hypersensitive reaction to a prior injection should avoid continued use of the vaccine. Some people get a sore arm or mild fever from the injection.

Influenza (Flu)

The influenza virus can cause fever, sore throat, cough, headache, chills, and muscle aches. Most people are ill for several days, but some may need to be hospitalized.

You should be vaccinated if you:

are 50 or older

live or work in a nursing homes, assisted living facility or other chronic-care facility that houses people of any age who have chronic medical conditions

are a physician, nurse, or healthcare worker in a hospital or outpatient-care building

provide home care to persons in high-risk groups, and or live with people in high-risk groups

have chronic health problems, such as heart, lung and kidney disease, diabetes, anemia and other blood disorders; a weakened immune system caused by HIV/AIDS, long-term treatment with steroids, and cancer treatment with X-rays or drugs

will be in the second or third trimester of your pregnancy during the influenza season.

How often should you be vaccinated? Once a year, usually in the fall

What are the precautions and contraindications? If you have a history of Guillain-Barre Syndrome, or have a serious allergic reaction to eggs, consult with your physician before deciding whether to get immunized. People who are moderately or severely ill on the day their shot is scheduled should not be vaccinated until their symptoms subside.

Pneumococcal

This vaccine prevents serious infections to the lungs (pneumonia), the blood and the covering of the brain (meningitis).

You should be vaccinated if you:

are 65 and older

have kidney disease or kidney failure; HIV; heart, lung or sickle cell disease; diabetes; alcoholism; cirrhosis; leaks of cerebrospinal fluid, Hodgkin's disease; lymphoma; leukemia; bone marrow cancer; a damaged spleen or no spleen

have had an organ or bone marrow transplant, are undergoing long-term treatment with steroids, or radiation therapy for cancer

live in special environments in which the risk for pneumococcal disease or its complications is increased (Alaskan Natives and certain American Indian populations).

How often should you be vaccinated? Most people need one dose. Some people with certain medical conditions may require a second vaccination.

What are the precautions and contraindications? Some people have a sore arm for one or two days following the injection.

Measles and Mumps

Measles is a contagious disease that can lead to pneumonia, seizures, brain damage and death. Mumps is a viral infection characterized by swelling of the salivary glands near the neck. It can lead to deafness, meningitis, painful swelling of the testicles or ovaries, and, rarely, death.

You should be vaccinated if you:

were born after 1956 without written proof of immunization on or after their first birthday, or a blood test documenting immunity to measles.

are a healthcare worker born after 1956 (because of possible exposure to patients with measles).

are entering college or another post-high school educational institution.

are traveling to foreign countries.

How often should you be vaccinated? You'll need at least one dose. Two injections - with the second at least one month after the first - are necessary for people entering college, healthcare workers and travelers to foreign countries.

What are the precautions and contraindications? The vaccine is not recommended for HIV-infected persons with severe immunosuppression; persons with a life-threatening allergic reaction to gelatin, the antibiotic neomycin, or a previous dose of the vaccine. In addition, pregnant women should not be immunized, and women of childbearing age should avoid becoming pregnant for three months after the immunization.

Talk to your doctor about whether you should be vaccinated if you:

have a disease that affects your immune system, or are taking drugs that affect your immunity, such as steroids, for more than two weeks

have cancer, or are being treated with X-rays or drugs for cancer

ever had a low platelet count.

Find out from your doctor when you should be immunized if you recently received a transfusion or other blood products

If you are moderately or severely ill when you are scheduled to receive the shot, you should wait until your symptoms subside before being vaccinated.

Rubella

Also known as German Measles, Rubella is a virus that causes a rash, mild fever and arthritis (mostly in women). It can cause birth defects or miscarriage if a woman is infected during the first three months of her pregnancy.

You should be vaccinated if you:

have no written proof that you were immunized on or after your first birthday, or a blood test showing immunity to rubella.

are a healthcare worker who is at risk because of your exposure to patients with rubella, and who may have contact with pregnant patients.

How often should you be vaccinated? You'll need one dose.

What are the precautions and contraindictions? The vaccine is not recommended for HIV-infected persons with severe immunosuppression; persons with a life-threatening allergic reaction to gelatin, the antibiotic neomycin, or a previous dose of the vaccine. In addition, pregnant women should not be immunized, and women of childbearing age should avoid becoming pregnant for three months after the immunization.

Talk to your doctor about whether you should be vaccinated if you:

have a disease that affects your immune system, or are taking drugs that affect your immunity, such as steroids, for more than two weeks

have cancer, or are being treated with X-rays or drugs for cancer

ever had a low platelet count.

Find out from your doctor when you should be immunized if you recently received a transfusion or other blood products. If you are moderately or severely ill when you are scheduled to receive the shot, you should wait until your symptoms subside before being vaccinated.

Hepatitis B

Hepatitis B is a virus that can cause acute short-term symptoms, such as loss of appetite, diarrhea and vomiting, jaundice, pain in muscles, joints and stomach, and tiredness. It can also lead to liver failure and liver cancer.

You should be vaccinated if you:

could be exposed at work to blood or blood-contaminated body fluids (healthcare personnel and public-safety employees, such as police officers and firefighters)

are a client and staff member at an institution for the developmentally disabled, or a residential center (schools and workshops) attended by known hepatitis B carriers

are a dialysis patient

receive blood products for clotting disorders

are a sexual partners of a hepatitis B carrier, and live in the same household

are a family member of an adoptee from countries where hepatitis B infections are common

are a sexually active homosexual or bisexual man

are a heterosexual man or woman with multiple sexual partners, or were recently diagnosed with a sexually transmitted disease

abuse injectable drugs

plan to stay more than six months in a foreign country with high rates of hepatitis B infection

are a prison inmate.

How often should you be vaccinated? You'll need three doses (the second dose 1-2 months after the first, and the final dose 4-6 months after the first)

What are the precautions and contraindications? The vaccine is made in baker's yeast, so people with a life-threatening allergic reaction to that substance, or to a previous dose of hepatitis B vaccine, should not be immunized. People who are moderately or severely ill at the time the shot is scheduled should wait until they recover before getting immunized.

Polio

Polio is a virus that can cause paralysis and death. A routine vaccination is not necessary for U.S. residents older than 18.

However, the vaccine is recommended if you:

are traveling to countries where polio is common

work in a laboratory where you might handle specimens of the virus

are a healthcare worker treating patients who might have polio.

are an unvaccinated adult whose children will be getting the oral polio vaccine

are a member of a community or specific population group with disease caused by "wild" polio.

How often should you be vaccinated? Adults in the high-risk groups who have never been vaccinated against polio should get three injections of the Inactivated Polio Vaccine (IPV):

the first at any time

the second 1-2 months later, and

the last 6-12 months after the second.

High-risk adults who have had one or two doses of polio vaccine in the past should get the remaining one or two doses of IPV.

What are the precautions and contraindictions? The oral vaccine is no longer recommended for use in the United States because of the slight risk (one out of 2.4 million) of contracting polio. Vaccination of pregnant women should be avoided. You should not get a polio shot if you have ever had a life-threatening allergic reaction to the antibiotics neomycin, streptomycin or polymyxin B, or a severe reaction to a previous dose of the vaccine. If you are moderately or severely ill when your vaccination is scheduled, you should wait until the symptoms subside before being vaccinated.

Chickenpox

Chickenpox (varicella) is a common childhood disease. It is usually mild, but it can be serious, especially in young infants and adults. Chickenpox causes a rash, itching, fever, and tiredness. It can lead to severe skin infection, scars, pneumonia, brain damage, or death.

If you never had chickenpox and lack evidence of immunity, you should consider being vaccinated if you:

live in a household with young children

live or work in environments in which transmission of chickenpox is likely (e.g., teachers of young children, day-care employees, and residents and staff in institutional settings) or can occur (e.g., college students, inmates and staff of correctional institutions, and military personnel)

are a nonpregnant woman of childbearing age (to reduce the risk of transmitting the virus to the fetus if you become pregnant in the future)

are traveling overseas, because chickenpox is common in most countries.

How often should you get vaccinated? People who do not get the vaccine until they were age 13 or older should get two doses, 4-8 weeks apart.

What are the precautions and contraindications? The vaccine is not recommended for people with HIV/AIDS. You should not get the chickenpox vaccine if you have ever had a life-threatening allergic reaction to gelatin, the antibiotic neomycin, or a previous dose of the vaccine. Pregnant women should not be vaccinated, and women should not get pregnant for one month after getting the chickenpox vaccine.

Check with your doctor about whether you should get the vaccine if you:

have a disease that affects the immune system, or are taking drugs that affect your immunity, such as steroids, for more than two weeks

have cancer, or are being treated with X-rays or drugs for cancer.

Find out from your doctor when you should be immunized if you recently received a transfusion or other blood products. If you are moderately or severely ill when you are scheduled to receive the shot, you should wait until your symptoms subside before being vaccinated.

Hepatitis A

Hepatitis A is a viral disease that attacks the liver, causing mild flu-like symptoms, jaundice, severe stomach pains and diarrhea.

You should be vaccinated if you:

travel to, or work in, foreign countries that have high or intermediate rates of infection (Central or South America, the Caribbean, Mexico, Asia - excluding Japan, Africa, and southern or eastern Europe.)

live in communities with high rates of hepatitis A infection (American Indian, Alaska Native, and Pacific Islander communities, and some religious communities)

live in a community with a prolonged outbreak of hepatitis A infection.

are a sexually active homosexual male.

use illegal drugs.

have a chronic liver disease

receive clotting-factor concentrates.

work with infected primates or hepatitis A specimens in a research laboratory.

How often should you be vaccinated? You'll need two doses, given 6-12 months apart. The first dose should be administered at least one month before you travel overseas.

What are the precautions and contraindications? You should not have another dose of the vaccine if you received a serious allergic reaction to the previous dose. If you are moderately or severely ill on the day the shot is scheduled, wait until your symptoms have subsided before being vaccinated.

Meningococcal

Meningococcal Meningitis is a potentially deadly inflammation of the membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord. The disease is usually caused by a viral or bacterial infection. Viral meningitis is relatively mild with fever and headache, but bacterial meningitis, if left untreated, can be fatal.

How often should you be vaccinated? The vaccine is given in a single dose. Revaccination after 3 to 5 years for individuals at increased risk or during outbreaks should be considered. Education about the disease and the benefits of vaccination should be provided to incoming or current college freshmen, particularly those living in dormitories.

What are the precautions and contraindications?Adverse reactions are usually mild, consisting primarily of pain and redness at the injection site for 1 or 2 days or fever.