Check with your primary care provider to make sure you have received all the necessary doses vaccines you may have received as a child or teenager. (Getty Images)
By Sara McCloskey
With the start of the school year, families are bringing their children to the doctor’s office to checkup on annual vaccines. But did you know adults should be checking in with their doctors too?
“Even if you received all your vaccines as a child, you will still need vaccines as an adult,” said Jean-Venable “Kelly” Goode, Pharm.D., professor and director of the Community Pharmacy Practice and Residency Program at Virginia Commonwealth University’s School of Pharmacy. “Due to recent advances in vaccines, there may be newer vaccines available that you have not received yet.”
Vaccines, also called immunizations, help your body fight off infections. When you get one of these shots, your immune system learns what the germ looks like, and your body can figure out how to defend itself without the dangers of the actual infection.
Goode is a leading national expert on vaccines, as she was appointed as a liaison representative to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, representing the American Pharmacists Association (APhA). The APhA Foundation also named Goode as one of the most influential women in pharmacy in 2022.
Staying up to date on adult immunizations can be time consuming, so Goode spoke with VCU Health News about what vaccines to discuss with your primary care provider.
What vaccinations do we get as children that wear off as adults? Do we need to get new shots for these immunizations?
You will need to get boosted or new doses of certain vaccines over time. For example, tetanus-diphtheria-pertussis vaccine (Tdap) requires a booster every 10 years to maintain protection against these illnesses.
Other vaccines, including influenza (flu) and COVID-19, are recommended every year because the viruses they offer protection from mutate and an updated vaccine is needed to fight off newer variants.
It's also important to check with your primary care provider to make sure you have received all the necessary doses for the several vaccines that you may have received when you were younger, such as measles, mumps, rubella (MMR), varicella (chickenpox) and Hepatitis B.
Are there certain times in adulthood when we are more susceptible to certain illnesses?
Adults are more at risk for certain illnesses, and risk may be increased based on age, job, health conditions or travel plans, so adults might need additional vaccines to protect themselves or their loved ones.
Immunization protects a person from getting sick and from spreading infections. Getting vaccinated can help you stay healthy and save your life.
What vaccinations should adults consider getting as part of preventive care?
Besides making sure you are up to date on the vaccines mentioned above, there are several other immunizations and health concerns to take into consideration. Talk to your health care provider about what vaccines you might need at your next visit to the office or pharmacy.
Here are vaccine recommendations based on age:
18 to 26 years old:
- Human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine if you are not already vaccinated
- Hepatitis B vaccine if you have not already received the recommended number of vaccine doses (2 to 3 based on the vaccine brand)
27 to 49 years old:
- Hepatitis B vaccine if you have not already received the recommended number of vaccine doses (2 to 3 based on the vaccine brand)
50 to 64 years old:
- Shingles vaccine
- If you are under 60, check with your doctor to make sure you have received all the recommended doses for the Hepatitis B vaccine
- If you are 60 and older, you may be at increased risk for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and are recommended to receive the RSV vaccine. Those at increased risk include adults with chronic illnesses, weakened immune systems, severe obesity and diabetes, or those who are living in a nursing home or other long-term care facility. Ask your primary care provider if you are at increased risk for RSV. If you have already received an RSV vaccine, you do not need another dose at this time.
65 years and older:
75 years and older:
- Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine. If you have already received an RSV vaccine you do not need another one at this time.
- Check with your primary care provider to make sure you have received all the necessary doses of zoster (or shingles) vaccine
What vaccines should adults consider when they are around infants or small children?
Adults should be up to date with all the recommended vaccines to protect themselves and to prevent spreading illness to infants and children. Surrounding infants and children with individuals who are protected against viruses is called “cocooning.”
Adults and adolescents can be spread pertussis (whooping cough) which can be deadly for an unvaccinated or partially vaccinated infant.
If an adult will be in contact with infants, the adult is recommended to have received:
- Tdap vaccine within in the last 10 years. If an adult has not received a Tdap vaccine, it is recommended that they receive the vaccine 2 weeks before meeting the infant.
- Annual flu vaccine at least 2 weeks before meeting the infant
Pregnant individuals are recommended to receive certain vaccines to protect the infant during early months of life. These include:
- Tdap vaccine at 27 to 36 weeks of gestation in each pregnancy
- COVID-19 vaccine
- Flu for pregnancies during influenza vaccine season generally September through as late as April
- RSV vaccine (only Abrysvo) for during gestational weeks 32 to 36 during the RSV season, which is from September to January in most of the U.S. If you have received an RSV vaccine during one pregnancy, you do not need another dose at this time. Check with your pediatrician or primary care provider for how to protect your infant against RSV disease.
Where can people find more information about adult immunizations?
You will need to find your vaccination record, which is the history of all the vaccines you have received during your lifetime. Ask your parents, contact your current or previous primary care providers or the state health department. If you can’t find your record, ask your primary care provider if you should get some vaccines again.
Here are other resources used by primary care providers and pharmacists:
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Adult vaccines
- National Foundation for Infectious Diseases
- Immunize.org
- If you are not sure if you need a vaccine, you can take the CDC's adult immunizations quiz
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