WHY WAIT UNTIL IT’S TOO LATE?
When it comes to your children’s health, Prevention and Protection are the way to go. Here’s how to tackle five of the most common – and even serious – childhood ailments today. 

Hepatitis A
Hepatitis A is caused by the hepatitis A virus, which is found in the stool of those infected with the disease. Hepatitis A can be fatal and often requires hospitalisation. Other symptoms include severe stomach pain, diarrhoea and jaundice. 

Prevention
Children between the ages of 12 and 23 months should get vaccinated. Two doses of the vaccines, given six months apart, should be administered for lasting protection. 

Hepatitis B
Hepatitis B is a serious infection of the liver. Those infected can become lifelong carriers of the virus and suffer from general symptoms such as malaise, or even develop long-term problems such as chronic liver disease and liver cancer.

Hepatitis B can only be diagnosed through a blood test. While there are drugs available for treatment of adults, unfortunately, there hasn’t been enough research yet to certify these drugs safe for children.

Prevention
All pregnant women should be tested for the Hepatitis B virus early in their pregnancy. If the blood test returns positive, the baby should receive the Hepatitis B vaccine – along with the Hepatitis B Immune Globulin – within the first 12 hours of birth.

Protection
The Hepatitis B vaccine is given in a series of three injections. For babies born of mothers who are not carrying the Hepatitis B virus, the first injection is usually administered before leaving the hospital. However, it may also be taken at the four- or eight-week visit to the paediatrician. 

The second and third injections are often taken alongside other routine childhood immunisations.

Whooping Cough
Whooping cough is an infection of the respiratory system, characterised by the “whoop” sound children and adults make when they try to breathe in after a severe coughing spell. 
Anyone infected with whooping cough can spread it through coughing, sneezing, or even simply by talking to someone else. This is because the disease is spread via tiny droplets of saliva that contain the bordetella pertussis bacterium. Children and babies with low natural immunisation are especially susceptible. 

Prevention
The single most effective prevention measure is vaccination for parents and all other people that the child comes in close contact with regularly. In the past, there was no adequate vaccine for adults due to undesirable side effects of the child DTP, but there is now an adult version of the DTP which protects you from all three diseases for 10 years. 

Protection
There is no permanent protection against whooping cough, but immunisation through the diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis (DTP) vaccine has proven to be highly effective. 
Most parents diligently ensure that their child gets the required doses at the recommended ages of 18 months, three, four and five years. However, the fifth dose is often neglected although it provides maximum protection for the child. This is to be administered at the age of six. 

Chickenpox
Chickenpox is a highly contagious disease caused by the varicella-zoster virus. Until all crops of lesions have crusted over on the infected person, the disease continues to be contagious. The incubation period varies from two to three weeks and the virus can easily be transmitted from the infected person a few days before rashes appear. 

Prevention
If your child is not yet vaccinated, it is best to keep him away from sufferers of chicken pox – whether at home or in school. If he contracts chicken pox, ask your doctor about the effective and fast-acting anti-viral tablets that can ease the discomfort of your child. It helps to reduce the duration and severity of the chickenpox infection, accelerate healing and potentially diminish long-term scarring.

Protection
Any one above 12 months of age and hasn’t got a history of chickenpox can go for the chickenpox vaccination. The immune system takes about two weeks to build up protection. A single vaccination is sufficient for 12-year-olds and younger. A booster vaccination may be advisable in particular cases and a two-dose schedule should be used in anyone above 12 years old. 

Rotavirus infection (Gastroenteritis)
Rotavirus is the most common cause of gastroenteritis in young children worldwide. Also known as rotavirus infection, gastroenteritis is a viral infection of the digestive tract. Studies have shown that gastroenteritis is so prevalent that virtually all children get infected at least once within the first five years of their lives. In fact, one in every two infants hospitalised for diarrhoea is diagnosed with rotavirus infection. 

Prevention
One of the best ways to protect your child from rotavirus infection is through breastfeeding. It is also ideal for you to disinfect his regular play areas and toys. It is just as important to maintain strict hygiene practices at home – such as helping your child wash his hands after using the toilet, and washing your own hands after diaper-changing, or when preparing and serving food. 

Protection
World-renowned pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline has recently introduced a safe and effective rotavirus vaccine that is now approved for use in Singapore. Please request your child’s paediatrician for detailed information. 

6 – in - 1
In Singapore, the newest edition is DTPa-IPV-Hib- Hepatitis B (DTPa-IPV-Hib-HBV or ‘6-in-1’) vaccine. These vaccines are not experimental or research vaccines. They have been in use for several years in many developed countries. The Ministry of Health of Singapore has approved these for use in babies and children. 

There are four primary considerations in favour of this combined vaccine: 
o Reducing the number of injections and visits to the doctors
o A combined vaccine will reduce the number of injections and visits to the paediatricians for the babies. It is possible to complete the primary vaccination series (i.e. vaccination within the first year of life) with three injections.


Flu Jab
Influenza is usually a more severe illness than the common cold and typically has a sudden onset with headache, chills and cough followed rapidly by a fever, appetite loss, muscle aches, and tiredness. Thankfully, the influenza vaccination can offer some protection against the virus. 

After vaccination, the body’s immune system produces antibodies against the inactivated virus in the vaccine. If you are exposed to the real virus, the antibodies prevent the infection or reduce the likelihood of severe illness should infection occur. The Ministry Of Health recommends that travellers, both adults and children above six months, going to temperate countries in the Northern Hemisphere protect themselves against the disease with influenza vaccination. 

Children who have chronic disorders of the lungs or heart or who require regular medical follow-up or hospitalisation because of chronic metabolic diseases, kidney or blood disorders are advised to be vaccinated against influenza as well.