IMMUNIZATION – YOUR BEST PROTECTION

Vaccines are the best way to protect against some very serious diseases. Protect against two diseases, Hepatitis A and Typhoid with this vaccine.  

In Ontario, the combined Hepatitis A and Typhoid vaccine is available for sale to:

• Individuals 16 years of age and older: one dose

Note: Hepatitis A booster vaccine should be given 6 – 12 months following vaccination with combined Hepatitis A and Typhoid vaccine. Alternatively, combined Hepatitis A and Typhoid vaccine can be used as a Hepatitis A booster following initial vaccination with Hepatitis A vaccine.

What is Hepatitis A?

• A disease caused by a virus that can affect your liver
• Typical symptoms of illness include anorexia, nausea, fatigue, fever and jaundice
• Severity of illness increases with age, symptoms not frequent in younger children
• Chronic infection unknown to occur, however complete recovery may be slow
• Approximately 25% of reported adult cases require hospitalization and a small number of cases die from initial infection 

How is Hepatitis A spread?

Hepatitis A is most frequently spread by feces to mouth contact.  This can occur:

• when hands become contaminated with the virus

• by consuming food or water that has been contaminated by an infected person

• from certain sexual practices

• occasionally, by injection drug equipment

What is Typhoid?

• Infects only human
• Fatality rate is approximately 16% for untreated cases and 1% for those given appropriate antibiotic therapy
• Up to 5% of those infected become chronic carriers, shedding the bacteria in stool

How is Typhoid spread?

Disease is usually spread through food contaminated from feces or urine of people with the disease. 

How safe is the combined Hepatitis A and Typhoid vaccine?

Vaccines are among the safest of modern medicine.  The only individuals who should NOT receive the vaccine are those who:

• are ill with a fever or infection
• have had a severe allergic reaction (called anaphylaxis) to a past dose of the vaccine or any of its components (aluminum, an antibiotic called neomycin)

What are the side effects that I should watch for after vaccination?

Serious side effects from the vaccine are very rare (1:1,000,000). Most have no problems following vaccination. Possible side effects include:

• redness and soreness where the needle was given
• headache, dizziness, nausea and diarrhea
• allergic reactions (ie. hives, swelling and difficulty breathing) occur very rarely. If these symptoms occur, seek medical attention immediately

Call your doctor if you develop any symptoms that are severe or last more than a few days.  Please note that serious side effects are very unlikely to occur and the benefits of the vaccine are much greater than the risks.

If you choose to receive this vaccine today, it is required that you wait two days before donating blood.

For more information on this vaccine, contact one of the numbers below and ask to speak to a Nurse in the Vaccine Preventable Diseases Program.