For parents of school-age children, mid-summer is the perfect time to double-check that your kids are up to date on all their recommended vaccines. With school starting next month, you want to make sure your kids are fully protected before they head back to class.
You may have seen some news about childhood vaccines earlier this year, but the bottom line is that the vaccines doctors recommend for kids remain unchanged. Here’s a look at why vaccines are so important and which ones children should receive – and when.
Vaccines Save Lives
Before vaccines were developed and widely administered, it could be dangerous just to be around other people. For example, smallpox killed hundreds of millions in the 20th century.
We don’t really hear about smallpox anymore. Why? Because this deadly disease was fully eradicated by 1980, thanks to widespread vaccinations. Because it’s been eliminated, people don’t even have to get a smallpox vaccine anymore.
Before Jonas Salk developed the polio vaccine in the 1950s, this terrible disease killed tens of thousands each year and left millions more permanently paralyzed. Now? We continue to get a polio vaccine because the disease still exists in some parts of the world, but it has been effectively eliminated in the United States and most other nations.
Measles: A Cautionary Tale
Polio and smallpox represent two amazing vaccine success stories. However, another deadly disease – especially for young children – offers a cautionary tale.
In 2000, the United States celebrated a remarkable public health victory. Measles, the dreaded disease that once infected hundreds of thousands of children annually (sometimes fatally), was declared to be eliminated in this country. The reason for this success was widespread vaccinations which stopped the disease’s ability to spread.
Unfortunately, a quarter century later, measles is back. In 2025, there were more than 800 reported cases of measles in Texas. Why did we backslide so quickly? The reason is vaccine hesitancy – the trend of parents making the decision that their kids don’t need certain (or any) vaccines. While no doubt well-intended, this course of action needlessly puts children at risk for preventable, dangerous diseases.
How Vaccines Work
Vaccines work by bolstering the human body’s natural defenses. The body naturally produces white blood cells to fight off infections. Vaccines strengthen those defenses by helping to train white blood cells on how to fight the disease. After the vaccine, certain types of white blood cells will remember how to fight a particular infection if they encounter it again. With some diseases, multiple doses of a vaccine are required to fully train the body to fight the infection. Some protections may wear off over time, necessitating a booster vaccine to bring the body’s defenses back up to maximum strength.
Myths – and Lies – About Vaccines
Over the last three decades, there has been a flood of misinformation about vaccines. Most of this can be traced to a discredited British researcher who falsely claimed certain vaccines cause autism. There is no evidence to support this claim.
Over time, others have joined this chorus and alleged that vaccines are unsafe or cause dangerous side effects. Again, these claims are false.
“As doctors, our most solemn responsibility is to provide the very best care for each and every one of our patients,” says Dr. Damien Mitchell, a North Dallas pediatrician. “We would never recommend a vaccine for your child if it was not safe. It’s completely understandable for parents to have questions about vaccines – we just encourage you to talk to your doctor about your questions and take what you read on social media with a grain of salt.”
Have Vaccine Recommendations Changed?
No, the recommendations from pediatricians and other doctors have not changed. What is different is that the federal government has recently proposed moving some childhood vaccines from the group that is recommended for all children to a category called “shared clinical decision-making” (SCDM). This is a fancy way of saying that parents and their doctors can discuss these vaccines before the kids get them.
These changes are on hold, however, due to litigation focused on how the government made these decisions. And the reality is that this change, even if it were in effect, would have little practical impact – parents currently discuss their children’s treatment with pediatricians and should continue to do so.
In rare cases in which a child has a severe allergy to a certain vaccine or is immunocompromised, the doctor may advise forgoing certain immunizations. But for the vast majority of children, doctors advise they receive all recommended immunizations.
The American Academy of Pediatrics, American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, American Medical Association and many other health organizations strongly recommend that children continue to receive all vaccines that have been proven to prevent dangerous diseases. The doctors of Privia Medical Group North Texas agree with these recommendations.
Diseases Vaccines Prevent
Vaccines help protect your children against many diseases – now and later in life as an adult. Here’s a look at the serious diseases that vaccines will prevent.
Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV)
RSV is a respiratory illness that can cause serious problems for infants.
Hepatitis B
Hepatitis B is a virus that attacks the liver. It is spread through blood and other bodily fluids.
Rotavirus
Rotavirus causes gastroenteritis, an inflammation of the digestive system. It can result in severe diarrhea, vomiting, fever and pain.
Diphtheria
Diphtheria causes a thick covering in the throat and can lead to cardiovascular and breathing problems, paralysis and death. It is spread through the air and direct contact.
Tetanus (Lockjaw)
Tetanus causes tightening of muscles throughout the body. In the event the jaw locks, a person may be unable to swallow. It can lead to breathing difficulties and even death. It can be contracted through a cut in the skin.
Pertussis (Whooping Cough)
This disease causes intense coughing fits for infants and young children, leaving them unable to eat or drink. Pertussis can lead to pneumonia and death. It is highly contagious, spreading through the air and direct contact.
Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib Disease)
Hib disease is a bacterial infection that can lead to meningitis, pneumonia and death. It is the most common cause of epiglottitis, a life-threatening condition in which the epiglottis, the cartilage that covers the windpipe, becomes swollen and obstructs the airway. Before the Hib vaccine, Hib disease was the leading cause of bacterial meningitis infections in children younger than five. It spreads through air and direct contact.
Pneumococcal conjugate
Pneumococcal disease can cause ear infections, bloodstream infections, meningitis and pneumonia. Young children and older people are especially vulnerable to pneumonia. Pneumococcal bacteria spread through the air and direct contact.
Polio
Polio is a devastating disease that can cause paralysis and death. It was quite common in the first half of the 20th century. Because polio cases continue to be reported in some parts of the world, immunization remains necessary.
Measles
Measles causes a runny nose, sore throat, cough, fever and a rash that spreads all over the body. Measles can put some people in the hospital and even cause death. Even mild cases of the measles will disrupt a child’s immune system for years, as the virus attacks the white blood cells that are responsible for remembering how to fight off certain diseases. Highly contagious, measles will infect 90% of unvaccinated people who come in contact with it.
Mumps
Mumps causes flu-like symptoms and swollen salivary glands.
Rubella
Rubella produces symptoms similar to measles.
Chickenpox
Chickenpox is highly contagious and spreads through air and direct contact. It causes severe rash, fever and fatigue. The virus that causes chickenpox can also cause shingles in adults.
Before a vaccine was approved for use in 1995, chickenpox was quite common, usually affecting children ages 10 and younger.
Hepatitis A
Hepatitis A attacks the liver. It generally spreads through accidental ingestion of microscopic amounts of fecal matter.
Human papillomavirus (HPV)
This vaccine is important for protecting children later in life. HPV vaccination prevents six types of cancer. Who doesn’t want to reduce cancer risk for themselves or their children?
HPV is the primary cause of cervical cancer and can also lead to several other types of cancer: anal, vulvar, vaginal, penile and oropharyngeal, which is on the rise – especially among middle-aged men.
HPV is a common virus transmitted through sexual contact. In most cases, HPV is harmless, but sometimes it can alter cells and cause cancer. The HPV vaccine dramatically reduces the odds of ever developing these six cancers. And if you’re an adult who never got an HPV vaccine, you could still get one up to age 45.
Meningitis
There are several different forms of meningococcal disease, some of which can be prevented through vaccinations. This disease causes meningitis, which attacks the central nervous system by infecting membranes on the brain and spinal cord. It can also cause infection of the bloodstream.
Meningitis is prone to be transmitted between teenagers and college students through sharing drinks, kissing and living in close quarters, such as a dorm. Meningitis is a highly contagious, dangerous illness that leads to death in 1 out of 10 cases. Those who survive the disease often have very serious and lasting health conditions. Vaccinations are the best way to prevent infection.
Other Illnesses Vaccines Protect Against
Influenza (Flu)
Flu can make people of all ages sick for a week or two. It can be especially dangerous for very young children. Fever, aches, pains are all common with the flu. In some cases, it can lead to pneumonia.
While the annual flu vaccine does not always prevent the flu, it reduces the chances of getting it and lessens the symptoms if you do.
COVID-19
COVID-19 is still around, continually updating itself with new variants and causing a variety of unpleasant respiratory symptoms.
Just like the flu shot, the COVID vaccine reduces the likelihood of getting COVID and reduces the severity of the symptoms if you do get it.
The flu and COVID spread easily in schools, so it’s smart to get your kids the maximum protection possible with these vaccines.
Childhood Vaccine Schedule
Your child needs specific vaccines as they grow up. For some diseases, the vaccine is administered in multiple doses.
Here’s a look at all recommended childhood vaccines, by age group:
Birth
- Hepatitis B (HepB), 1st dose
Birth – 7 months
- RSV (RSV-mAb): 1 dose, depending on mom’s RSV vaccine status during pregnancy and time of year of birth (due to RSV being a seasonal illness). The RSV injection for infants is not actually a vaccine; it is a monoclonal antibody (mAb). mAbs are proteins engineered to behave like an immune system response.
1-2 Months
- HepB, 2nd dose
2 Months
- Rotavirus (RV), 1st dose
- Diphtheria, tetanus, acellular pertussis (DTaP), 1st dose
- Hib, 1st dose
- Pneumococcal conjugate (PCV 15, PCV 20), 1st dose
- Inactivated poliovirus (IPV), 1st dose
4 Months
- Rotavirus (RV), 2nd dose
- Diphtheria, tetanus, acellular pertussis (DTaP), 2nd dose
- Hib, 2nd dose
- Pneumococcal conjugate (PCV 15, PCV 20), 2nd dose
- Inactivated poliovirus (IPV), 2nd dose
6 Months
- Diphtheria, tetanus, acellular pertussis (DTaP), 3rd dose
- Pneumococcal conjugate (PCV 15, PCV 20), 3rd dose
- Rotavirus (RV), 3rd dose, depending on type of vaccine
- Hib, 3rd dose, depending on type of vaccine
6 Months & Repeat Every Year
- Influenza
- COVID-19, after consultation between parent and doctor
6-18 Months
- HepB, 3rd dose
- Inactivated poliovirus (IPV), 3rd dose
12 Months
- Hib, 3rd or 4th dose
- Pneumococcal conjugate (PCV 15, PCV 20), 4th dose
- Measles, mumps, rubella (MMR), 1st dose
- Varicella, aka chickenpox (VAR), 1st dose
12-23 Months
- Hepatitis A (HepA), 2-dose series
15 Months
- Diphtheria, tetanus, acellular pertussis (DTaP), 4th dose
4-6 Years
- Diphtheria, tetanus, acellular pertussis (DTaP), 5th dose
- Inactivated poliovirus (IPV), 4th dose
- Measles, mumps, rubella (MMR), 2nd dose
- Varicella (VAR), 2nd dose
9-12 Years
- Human papillomavirus (HPV), 2-dose series
11-12 Years
- Tetanus, diphtheria, acellular pertussis (Tdap)
- Meningococcal (MenACWY)
16 Years
- Meningococcal (MenB), after consultation with doctor
Make Your Appointment Today
With just a few weeks until school starts, now is the time to make your child’s appointment with their pediatrician to get a check-up and ensure they are up to date on vaccines. It’s a simple step that will protect their health now and in the years to come.
“If you have any questions whatsoever about the vaccines your child should receive, please don’t hesitate to ask your doctor,” says Dr. Ronald Blair, a pediatrician in Mesquite. “We are here for those questions and always happy to answer them. We want your child to be safe and healthy and we want you to have peace of mind that you are making the right decisions for their future.”
This article has been reviewed and approved by a panel of Privia Medical Group North Texas physicians.
This article contains information sourced from:
American Academy of Pediatrics
