Get vaccinated to protect your baby

The young mother had a lot on her plate with a newborn at home and a return to work facing her in the next six weeks. She had, however, obviously done her research during pregnancy and was really up on all things baby-related.

We discussed upcoming infant immunizations, and the mom proudly informed me that she, too, was planning to be vaccinated. I was pleased to hear that the mother was going in soon for her very own combination adult tetanus-diphtheria-pertussis vaccine, or Tdap. The young woman knew the shot would not only protect her against these three serious diseases, but would also indirectly help to protect her vulnerable baby girl.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention currently recommends that adolescents age 11 through 18 receive this new Tdap vaccine - two versions have been licensed in the United States since 2005 - since much of the pertussis or whooping cough protection imparted by infant and kindergarten vaccinations has waned by junior high or high school age.

Adults also need disease protection, but while usually diligent about immunizing their children, they often ignore their own vaccination schedule. In fact, many grown-ups wait until that close encounter with the rusty metal garden spike before going in for their emergency tetanus shot.

These days, there's even more impetus to seek out the combination tetanus-diphtheria-pertussis vaccine during adulthood. The CDC now recommends that most adults between 19 and 64 (note that neither Tdap vaccine is licensed for the over-65 crowd) get the new Tdap when they are up for their next tetanus booster shot. Currently, this Tdap is licensed for only one lifetime dose per individual, so the traditional Td vaccine remains the choice for the follow-up "every-decade" series of adult tetanus boosters.

Special emphasis is placed on the use of the newer Tdap vaccine to immunize new mothers as well as other women who are contemplating pregnancy. The second Tdap target group is quite large, as it includes any adult under age 65 who is in close contact with a baby under the age of 1. Finally, the CDC strongly recommends Tdap for health care workers who have direct contact with patients. A gap of two years between immunization with the last Td shot and vaccination with the new Tdap is suggested, but not mandatory.

In the year before Tdap licensure, 15,000 cases of pertussis were documented in the adolescent and adult populations, so it's obvious that vaccination has value for non-pediatric patients. Vaccinating these age groups also helps shield infants from a disease that the CDC labels as "very contagious," as whooping cough is easily spread from an adult or older sibling to baby through coughing, sneezing and close personal contact.

It's important to protect the littlest ones since infants under 1 year are considered at high risk for pertussis complications, which include pneumonia and seizures. The CDC reports that more than half of affected infants in this age group will require hospitalization as a result of the disease, and though pertussis mortality in the United States is relatively low, the vast majority - 92 percent - of pertussis-related deaths occur in infants under age 1.

• Dr. Helen Minciotti is a mother of five and a pediatrician with a practice in Schaumburg. She formerly chaired the Department of Pediatrics at Northwest Community Hospital in Arlington Heights.