This Page Was Last Updated: 12/29/05
The Health Division offers the following immunization and disease screening services to residents and Lexington workers. Most services are free of charge; however, an administrative fee may be charged for certain programs.
 | Vaccine clinics have been completed for the 2005-2006 flu season. |
There are a number of ways for you to receive your flu vaccine:
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Call you primary health care provider |
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Call you employer's Human Resource Department |
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The Town of Lexington Flu Clinic (Guidelines may apply) |
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Check the link Masspro website listed above and look for postings at your local pharmacies and grocery stores, etc. |
Additional Information about the flu:
http://www.mass.gov/dph/cdc/epii/flu/flu1.htm
| Adults 65 years of age and over. |
| Residents of any age in long-term care facilities housing persons with chronic medical conditions |
| Adults and children with chronic heart and lung disease, including asthma |
| Adults and children with chronic metabolic disease (including diabetes), kidney disease, anemia, HIV infection, or immunosuppression caused by other diseases, medications or treatments. |
| Children and teenagers (6 months to 18 years of age) receiving long-term aspirin therapy. |
| Women who will be in the second or third trimester of pregnancy during the flu season |
Household members of high-risk groups, health care workers and other caregivers of people in high-risk groups will be offered the vaccination after clinics for the vaccination of high-risk groups are completed.
| Persons with severe allergies to eggs |
| Persons ill with a fever should postpone vaccination until they are well |
Hepatitis B is a serious viral infection of the liver. Over 250,000 people are infected with this disease each year, 91% percent of whom are adolescents and young adults. Approximately 4,000-5,000 people who contract the illness die of it each year.
One hundred times more infectious than the AIDS virus, Hepatitis B can be contracted through contact with blood and body fluids. The disease is commonly transmitted through sex, sharing needles, ear piercing or tattooing. However, even people who do not engage in risky behavior can catch the disease through cuts, sharing toothbrushes or puncture wounds. It is estimated that there are one million carriers of the virus in the United States, or one out of every 200 people, and one out of every 20 persons will eventually become infected. Of those diagnosed as carrying the virus, 25% do not know how they became infected with Hepatitis B.
Symptoms of the disease include yellow-tinged skin and eyes, loss of appetite, pain in muscles, joints or stomach, and extreme tiredness; 30-40% of all carriers, however, may have no symptoms. Left untreated, the disease causes cirrhosis (severe scarring of the liver), liver cancer, and death.
While there is no cure for Hepatitis B, the disease can be prevented with a vaccine. The vaccine is administered through three shots given over the course of 4-6 months, and is 95% effective in preventing the disease. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommend that all newborns, infants, children and adolescents be vaccinated against Hepatitis B. The Massachusetts Immunization Program (MIP) supplies the Hepatitis B vaccine to local Boards of Health for all children through 18 years of age, and for targeted "catch-up" programs to reach adolescents in the 6th through 12th grades.
The Lexington Board of Health strongly advocates Hepatitis B immunizations, and recommends that parents of all children and adolescents who have not received Hepatitis B vaccines contact their family primary care providers.
A vaccine against Hepatitis B is available however, and is offered free of charge from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health to health care providers and public clinics for immunization of middle school and high school students. Due to the high transmissibility of the disease, all adolescents and young adults, and others at risk for contracting the disease such as healthcare providers or travelers to foreign countries, should take advantage of the vaccine.
Pneumococcal disease is an infectious respiratory illness of particular concern to older people. Pneumococcal disease is caused by bacteria that can infect the lungs (causing pneumonia), the blood (bacteremia), and the membrane surrounding the brain (meningitis). The disease is most likely to strike in the winter and spring, but may also occur year round. The most common symptoms are chills, fever, chest pain, shortness of breath, and a severe cough. Other people may vomit or have seizures. Pneumococcal disease kills thousands of older people in the United States each year.
Pneumococcal disease accounts for an estimated 3,000 cases of meningitis, 50,000 cases of bacteremia, and 500,000 cases of pneumonia annually. Drug-resistant strains of pneumococcal bacteria have become increasingly common in the United States and in other parts of the world, making treatment of invasive pneumococcal disease difficult.
| Persons over the age of 65 should receive the pneumococcal vaccine once to be protected from the disease. Routine re-vaccinations are not recommended. However, a second dose is indicated for persons who received their first dose when they were under the age of 65, and if 5 or more years have passed since that vaccination. A second dose is also indicated for those who have compromised immune systems. |
| The vaccine is recommended for persons of more than 2 years of age who have had chronic illness and are at increased risk for pneumococcal disease, and persons over 2 years of age who are immunocompromised or living in environments where risk of the disease is high. |
The vaccine is considered safe, based on evidence from its use since 1977. Side effects include mild, local reactions (pain or redness at the injection site), moderate systemic reactions (e.g., fever). More severe local reactions or systemic effects are rare.
Pneumococcal disease vaccine is offered annually at the autumn influenza vaccine clinic, and also year-round at the public health nurse's office in the Health Division. An appointment with the nurse is necessary to receive the immunization. Contact your private healthcare provider about receiving the vaccine.
Tetanus (commonly referred to as "lockjaw") is caused by bacteria that enters the body through a cut or wound. It can cause serious and painful muscle spasms, leading to immobility of the jaw and even death. Tetanus shots should be updated every ten years after the original vaccination series (usually started in infancy) as immunity begins to wane after this interval.
Diphtheria is a disease that causes a thick coating in the nose, throat, or airway. The bacteria spread from an infected person to others through sneezing, coughing, etc. Diphtheria can lead to breathing problems, heart failure, paralysis and death.
The vaccines for both Tetanus (Td) and Diptheria are administered to persons over the age of 7 in a single shot. The combined vaccine is essentially a booster to ensure immunity to both Tetanus and Diptheria in adults. Check with your physician before receiving this or any other immunization.
| All persons are indicated for vaccination against Tetanus |
| Persons 7 year of age and older |
| All persons who have received 3 initial doses of any type of Tetanus and Diphtheria vaccine to achieve basic immunity to the diseases, but need a booster shot. |
| After the initial series of shots is completed, a booster shot is needed every 10 years. |
| A person ever had a serious allergic reaction from the Tetanus vaccine |
| Who has a moderate or severe illness |
| Who is pregnant |
For more information or to request a vaccination, call the Health Division.
The Public Health Nurse offers free tuberculosis (Mantoux) tests to persons at high risk for the disease (see TB fact sheet); however, routine testing for the disease is no longer available. Risk status is determined according to guidelines from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. Routine pre-employment testing is not offered. TB tests are given only with a prior appointment; testing requires two office visits. Call the Health Division to arrange an appointment.
| Persons needing diagnostic work-up for active TB:
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| Persons exposed to active TB in a communicable form:
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| Persons in the categories below are at risk for latent TB infection because
they:
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| Persons who, if infected, are at increased risk for progression to active
TB because of the following:
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| Special Considerations for testing children for TB
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The Health Division offers free blood pressure screening for at-risk individuals by appointment in the Public Health Nurse's office.
The Lexington Health Division works with the Massachusetts Immunization Program and the State Laboratory Institute to maintain a local supply of vaccines for public and private healthcare providers. Providers obtaining vaccines from the Health Division must first register with the Mass. Immunization Program. For more information on registration and ordering vaccines, contact the Health Division.
