Hepatitis B Vaccine (Given at Two Months)

As we mentioned, the hepatitis B vaccine protects your baby from the hepatitis B virus, which causes liver illness. The virus is typically transmitted by bodily fluids such as blood, and in severe cases can result in permanent infection, scarring of the liver, malignancy, liver failure, and even death. Children are most likely to catch hepatitis B from infected adults, especially infected mothers after childbirth (which is why the vaccine is given to babies shortly after birth, before they leave the hospital).

The hepatitis B immunization schedule contains three shots: one at birth, one between one and two months, and one at six months. By the time your child is 6 to 18 months old, the entire series should be completed.

This is the first immunization your baby will receive in the hospital, typically within the first 12 hours of life. Because an infected mother may expose her infant to the hepatitis B virus after birth, obtaining the vaccine as soon as possible helps protect the newborn from catching the disease.