Among the papers saved by my mother, Geraldine Margaret Guokas Pape (1928-2019), were handwritten records of the vaccinations received by her five children during our youth. In this time when some people are whining about needing one to two initial COVID-19 vaccinations, and at least one booster (so far), I thought it would be worthwhile to share this.
Below is a record of the injections I got to prevent polio, smallpox, and diphtheria / pertussis / tetanus (DPT). The six initial shots of DPT is still standard today. As I got older, I just got DT shots as the risk of pertussis (whooping cough) decreased with age.
I only received two smallpox shots, as routine vaccination against smallpox ended in the United States in the early 1970s as its incidence lessened. The last U.S. naturally-acquired smallpox case occurred in 1949, and the last in the world was in 1977. Vaccines work!
My mother also recorded my tuberculin skin tests (TBC on her records). In the 1960s and 1970s, when tuberculosis (TB) infection rates in the United States were high, universal screening for TB was required for all children. This was generally the tine test, where a small device with four to six tiny needles was pressed into the skin. I don't remember it being particularly painful, but I did get it seven times.
Polio was the biggest fear for my parents. My dad's younger sister had polio, which resulted in one leg being shorter than the other (and numerous surgeries in subsequent years to try to improve that situation).
Luckily, a polio vaccine was developed before I was born. The inactivated polio vaccine (IPV) was available first, given as a shot, in 1955. This was often called the Salk vaccine, after its developer, Jonas Salk.
A more convenient form, called oral polio vaccine (OPV), was given as liquid drops via the mouth - or added to a sugar cube, the way I remember getting it. It was developed in 1961, and was often called the Sabin for developer Albert Sabin. OPV was recommended for use in the United States for almost 40 years, from 1963 until 2000. Thanks to the vaccine, the United States has been polio-free since 1979.
As can be seen from the record below on my and my siblings' Sabin vaccines, even my parents (Fred and Gerrie) received this oral polio vaccine in the early and mid-1960s. They also received six (Dad) or seven (Mom) IPVs between 1956 and 1962.
You'll notice I had no vaccination for measles, mumps, or chickenpox (varicella). I had those childhood diseases before vaccines were available. I had measles at Christmas when I was five, mumps in the early summer when I was six, and chickenpox for my seventh birthday. I did receive the rubella (German measles) vaccine in 1973.
Quite a detailed record! In Poland, each newborn was given "a development booklet" in which doctors and nurses wrote notes during the years when a kid was growing up. The booklet had a vaccination section, as well. I still have it - I would need to compare my record with yours :-).
ReplyDeleteAleksandra, my mother got a similar booklet from my pediatrician - I have that as well. Thanks for commenting!
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