Vaccination Guide 2025

In 2025, there is no need to blindly pursue newly launched vaccines or pursue full category coverage. The core logic of vaccination decision-making is to "prioritize matching one's own risk level" - routine immunization program vaccines give priority to identifying and filling vacancies, and vaccines for emerging infectious diseases only need to be vaccinated against high-exposure risk groups, which can maximize protection benefits and reduce the probability of unnecessary adverse reactions.

Let me tell you a true story that I encountered last week. A best friend of mine who is an administrator saw an internet celebrity saying that the newly released triple vaccine of COVID-19 + influenza + respiratory syncytial virus is a "life-saving vaccine for autumn and winter." She asked for leave and went to a community hospital to get it. As a result, the doctor scanned her health code and saw that her HP The third shot of the V9-price vaccine was almost a month past the appointment time. She had no underlying diseases and usually stayed at home and work. I directly advised her to take the V9-price shot first. The triple vaccine was not necessary at all. She was quite unhappy. After going back and checking the literature for a long time, she realized that what the doctor said was right.

This triple vaccine was just approved for sale at the beginning of this year. Many community hospitals lined up at the entrance of the alley the week it was first launched. The current public clinical data shows that after vaccination for people over 60 years old with underlying diseases, the incidence of severe respiratory diseases in autumn and winter can be reduced by 62%, which is a very obvious gain. ; However, after vaccination in healthy 18-40-year-old groups, compared with those who only received conventional influenza vaccines, the infection rate was only reduced by less than 8%. On the contrary, 12% of vaccine recipients will suffer from low-grade fever and fatigue for 1-2 days. Therefore, clinical trials generally only give priority to high-risk groups to make reservations for this vaccine.

Oh, by the way, the national electronic health card now has access to vaccination records in all cities. You no longer need to look through your childhood green book to find out what vaccines were missed. Open the electronic health card on WeChat Alipay and click "Vaccination Recommendation", and the system will automatically match your age. , gender, past medical history, place of residence and even occupation, I will give you a list of vaccinations with the highest priority. This is how I checked last week, only to find out that I missed the inactivated hepatitis A vaccine when I was a child. I just received the first injection last week, and there was no other reaction except arm soreness for two days.

Regarding the recent hotly debated issue of "should people over 30 years old take the shingles vaccine in advance?", there is currently no unified conclusion in the industry. There are strong arguments on both sides: scholars in the field of public health recommend early vaccination. After all, young people have stayed up late and been under a lot of stress in the past 10 years. The incidence of herpes zoster among people aged 30-49 has increased by 37%, and many people have symptoms after getting sick. Menstrual pain can last for two to three months, so take early vaccination to avoid suffering; however, most clinicians in the Department of Infectious Diseases recommend that the general population wait until they are 45-50 years old before taking vaccinations. The antibody protection period of existing dosage forms is 10-12 years, and the real peak period of herpes zoster is after the age of 50. Now, after vaccination, the antibodies drop below the protective threshold around the age of 70, and another injection is unnecessary. Of course, if you have an immune deficiency, have been taking immunosuppressants for a long time, or have had herpes zoster before and are afraid of recurrence, then don’t worry, you can get the shot now.

Parents with children at home don’t have to insist on grabbing imported vaccines. My sister’s baby received the domestic pentavalent and 13-valent pneumonia vaccine last year. The protection rate in the third phase of clinical data was less than 1% different from the imported version, and the incidence of adverse reactions was 0.3 percentage points lower. Her baby was a little fussy the same day after the vaccination. It was much more comfortable than the three-day fever after my friend’s family received the imported vaccine. There is now a sufficient supply of domestically produced vaccines in community hospitals, so you don’t have to squat to grab them. You can get them when you go. One injection can save you hundreds of dollars, and it is very fragrant.

There is also a new guideline that many women preparing for pregnancy do not know: at the end of 2024, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has just updated the vaccination regulations for pregnancy preparation. Now HPV vaccine, influenza vaccine, and hepatitis B vaccine can be taken normally during pregnancy preparation. There is no need to wait for half a year before getting pregnant. Only the rubella vaccine needs to be taken 1 month apart before preparing for pregnancy. I had a friend who didn't know this. She didn't dare to get a flu shot when she was trying to get pregnant. She got infected in the winter and didn't dare to take medicine for a week. She suffered the same fate.

Oh, yes, there is also the COVID-19 booster shot that everyone has asked about the most. Nowadays, quarterly vaccination is no longer required. Only medical staff, cold chain practitioners, frequent travelers, and high-risk groups with underlying diseases can receive a vaccine against the prevailing strain of the year every autumn and winter. Ordinary healthy people no longer need routine vaccination.

In fact, after so many years of visiting disease control and community vaccination sites, my biggest feeling is that vaccines are essentially a protective shield for health. It is not that the thicker the vaccine, the better. If it is too heavy, it will add unnecessary burden to the body. When you’re not sure, you don’t have to browse Xiaohongshu to read all kinds of grass. There is a free consultation desk at the community vaccination point downstairs. The doctor receives dozens or hundreds of consultations a day, and the advice he gives is more accurate than if you browse the posts in a week, so you don’t have to worry about it.