Adult Immunizations

Answer 12 quick questions to learn which vaccines you may need.

Vaccines are recommended for adults based on age, health conditions, job, and other factors. No personal information will be retained by CDC.

This vaccine assessment tool applies to adults 19 years or older.

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Vaccine Safety

Discover how vaccines contribute to safety and effectiveness in reducing serious illnesses, hospitalizations, and deaths caused by vaccine-preventable diseases.

FAQs - Adult

• I am afraid to get the flu shot because I have heard that it can give you the flu. Is that true?

No, influenza vaccine(s) given as an injection is an inactivated (not a live virus) vaccine and therefore is incapable of causing influenza infection. About 1% of persons who receive the vaccine may experience non-specific systemic symptoms such as fever, chills, and/or muscle aches and pains. These usually occur within 6-12 hours of vaccination and last 1-2 days. It is possible persons have mistaken these side effects as "real flu."

Flu vaccine(s) traditionally contains protection against 3-4 separate flu strains. For the past 30+ years, at least one of the vaccine viruses was changed, on average, every year. Therefore, annual vaccination is necessary to acquire immunity to the new vaccine strain(s) each year.

Most people who should have pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine only need 1 dose. Those with medical conditions that put them at risk for invasive pneumococcal disease should receive the first dose between ages 2 and 64 and a second dose 5 years after the first dose. Research indicates that more doses do not provide more protection. Healthy persons should receive 1 dose on or after age 65. Only those persons who have had a bone marrow transplant should receive more than 2 doses of pneumococcal polysaccharide vaccine (PPSV23) in their lifetime.

Generally live virus vaccines, such as MMR and varicella (chickenpox) vaccine, should not be given to any woman who is pregnant or planning pregnancy in the next 1-3 months. Yellow fever vaccine (a live virus) may be considered for some persons traveling to certain areas. If indicated, inactivated vaccines and toxoids such as Td/Tdap (tetanus-diphtheria or tetanus-diphtheria-acellular pertussis vaccine) and hepatitis B may be administered. Women who are pregnant during flu season should have influenza vaccine.