Late-life immunisation

In most developing countries including India, the word immunisation is most identified with children. In developed countries, however, adult immunisation is popular and is often carried out free by the government. This is not the scenario in India probably due to the huge population. Immunisation, if begun at the age of 50 years, can result in drastic reduction in death rate. It is aimed at preventing infections and maintaining the quality of life in old age.

Vaccinations of 50 years of age or older differs from individual to individual based on the presence or absence of other illnesses such as diabetes, asthma etc. Jothydev’s Diabetes Research Centre started adult immunisation about 15 years ago. In those days, not every vaccine was available in India. It is well proven that if you take vaccine against influenza and pneumonia, a huge chunk of hospitalisations can be prevented.

Pneumococcal — the vaccine against pneumonia — is mandatory from the age of 65. The tetanus vaccine should be repeated once in 10 years, and there is also one against measles. The influenza vaccine called Flu Shot needs to be repeated every year, and vaccine is developed based on the recommendations of the WHO, taking into account the new viruses prevalent at that time. Apart from preventing illnesses such as H1N1, these can, to an extent, prevent heart attacks. The elderly are more affected by flu epidemics and the chances of death are several folds higher. Even after the infection is resolved, elderly with multiple other illnesses, seldom go back to their original health status. These vaccines, beyond the age of 50 years, are significantly cost effective.

(The author is a consultant in geriatrics and was instrumental in starting the geriatric unit in Trivandrum Medical College.)