Immunizations Specialist

Primary Care Associates of Maryland

Family Medicine & Geriatrics located in Frederick, MD & Clarksburg, MD

Without modern immunization, infectious diseases would be much more prevalent throughout the world. At Primary Care Associates of Maryland, with two locations in Frederick and another in Clarksburg, Maryland, Praveen Bolarum, MD, and the dedicated team provide the vaccinations you need to avoid illnesses like the flu, hepatitis A and B, and chickenpox. To find out more, call Primary Care Associates of Maryland or request an appointment online today.

Immunizations Q & A

What is immunization?

Immunization is the process of preparing your immune system to fight infectious diseases. While you can’t prevent every disease in the world with immunizations, vaccines exist for many diseases that once affected large portions of the population. When large percentages of the population get the immunizations they need, it prevents deadly outbreaks and even protects those who are not vaccinated.

At Primary Care Associates of Maryland, the team can help you keep up on the immunizations you need as an adult or a child. Most immunizations work by introducing an inactive version of the disease, or a protein that imitates the disease, into your bloodstream. Your immune system learns to recognize it and attack it, so you don’t get sick.

Which immunizations should I get?

Immunizations exist for many infectious diseases. Your school or workplace might require you to have certain immunizations and a record of them. The team at Primary Care Associates of Maryland can give you the details of when you should get each immunization. There are vaccines available for:

Measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR)
Whooping cough
Polio
Smallpox
Rotavirus
Hepatitis A
Hepatitis B
Chickenpox
Pneumococcal
Meningococcal

Some immunizations require a single vaccine injection. Others must be updated with continual shots over time to maintain their efficacy.

What are my options for the flu vaccine?

The flu vaccine is a vaccine that protects you against the influenza virus. Unlike other vaccines, you need to get the flu vaccine once each year, typically in the fall, to teach your immune system to protect itself against the flu virus in its current form. When it comes to your flu vaccine, you have several options:

Intramuscular injection

The most popular way to get the flu vaccine is in the form of an injection into your muscle. You can get a trivalent flu vaccine for three flu virus strains, or a quadrivalent flu vaccine for four strains. They contain inactive influenza viruses.

Nasal spray vaccine

The nasal spray vaccine isn’t an injection: It comes in the form of a spray for your nose. It contains weakened versions of the flu virus instead of inactive so that it can cause a few mild flu-like symptoms.

To find out more about the immunizations you need, call Primary Care Associates of Maryland or request an appointment online today.