The Hib Vaccine protects against Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib).
Table of contents
Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) is a bacterial infection the generally affects children under 5 years of age. It’s transmitted via direct contact and can stay in the child’s nose or throat not causing illness, or spread to the lungs or bloodstream and cause serious problems. Prior to the vaccine, Hib was the leading cause of bacterial meningitis, an infection of the lining of the brain and spinal cord. Hib can also cause pneumonia, severe swelling in the throat causing difficulty breathing, infections of the blood, joints, bones and covering of the heart and death, and even milder illnesses such as ear infections and bronchitis.
Every year before the vaccine, about 20,000 children got invasive Hib disease, and about 1,000 died. Over half the children who developed invasive disease were under 1 year old. Today, fewer than 50 cases of Hib occur each year in young children in the U.S. Studies have shown the vaccine to be more than 95% effective in protecting children from H. flu.
Hib Vaccine Schedule
The vaccine is a part of a combination vaccine, Pentacel, given at:
2 months, 4 months, 6 months, 12 to 15 months
Potentail Vaccine Reactions
Redness and tenderness at the injection site
Fever (>100.4 F)
Irritability
Fatigue
Brooke Kulasa, PA-C, has been a Kids Plus Provider since 2019.
