Screening · 4 min read
Vaccines aren't just for children: what adults need too
The boosters and catch-up doses adults quietly miss, and why 'I had that as a child' isn't always the end of the story.
By the TarragonHealth editorial team
Immunity doesn't always last forever
Some childhood vaccines wane over decades and need a booster in adulthood to stay effective; tetanus is the clearest example, needing a top-up roughly every ten years, a detail most adults have never been told. A vaccination record kept from childhood through adulthood, not two separate untracked histories, is what actually lets a doctor spot a gap.
HPV catch-up, for women who missed it
HPV vaccination is free at government primary health centres for girls aged 9 to 14 in Nigeria, but women who missed that window aren't out of options: catch-up doses are bookable up to age 45 and still meaningfully lower the risk of the cancers HPV causes, including cervical cancer.
Hepatitis B, if your series was never completed
The Hepatitis B vaccine is a series of doses, not a single shot, and an incomplete series (a common gap when doses were given at different clinics with no shared record) doesn't give full protection. If you're not certain your series was completed, that's worth confirming rather than assuming.
Before travel, or before a pregnancy
Travel to certain regions can require yellow fever proof or recommend typhoid coverage; planning a pregnancy is a good moment to confirm rubella immunity in particular, since infection during pregnancy carries real risk to the baby. Both are worth a conversation well before the trip or the pregnancy, not the week before.
This article is general health information, not medical advice, a diagnosis, or a treatment plan. Always talk to a doctor about your own situation, and if you feel seriously unwell, go to a hospital now.