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Vaccine Preventable Disease Control
County of Los Angeles
Department of Public Health
Vaccine Preventable Disease Control Program
3530 Wilshire Blvd. Suite 700
Los Angeles, CA 90010
Phone: (213) 351-7800
Email: ip@ph.lacounty.gov
The most common types of serious infections caused by Hib include:
Meningitis is the most common form of invasive Hib disease, accounting for 50% to 65% of cases. Symptoms of meningitis include fever, decreased mental status, and stiff neck.
Mild infections caused by Hib include ear infections in younger children and bronchitis in adults.
If you think you may have symptoms for infections described above, talk with your healthcare provider.
Vaccination with Hib vaccine is the best way to protect you and your family against Hib disease.
CDC recommends infants receive their first Hib vaccine as early as 6 weeks of age.
The Hib vaccine is safe and works very well in preventing Hib disease. Receiving all doses is 95% effective in preventing Hib disease.
Certain childhood vaccines (Vaxelis and PedvaxHib), are preferred for American Indian and Alaskan Native infants to provide protection against Hib.
Hib vaccination may be recommended for certain adults with certain medical conditions such as not having a spleen (asplenia) or having a spleen that does not work well such as sickle cell disease (functional asplenia). Click here for more information.
Who SHOULD get the vaccine:
Who should NOT get the vaccine:
There are many places to get the Hib vaccine. If you have insurance, talk to your doctor or check with your local pharmacy to see what vaccines are offered. Most health insurances cover the cost of all recommended vaccines for children and adults.
If you are uninsured or underinsured, there are programs available to help cover the cost of vaccines. Children who are 18 years of age or younger are eligible to receive vaccines at no cost through the Vaccines for Children (VFC) Program if they are:
Click to see if your child is eligible to receive VFC vaccines: English | Spanish
Uninsured or underinsured adults can access free or low cost vaccines at select clinics enrolled in the Vaccines for Adults (VFA) program. For more information on who is eligible, read VFA Eligibility Based on Insurance Status. You can use the following resources for more information on locating clinics:
You can also dial 2-1-1 for a list of free or low cost vaccine clinics. This includes Vaccines for Children (VFC) provider locations that serve Medi-Cal eligible children and uninsured or underinsured adults. Learn more about specific vaccine information for different age groups:
Are you not sure if you have been vaccinated against Hib or you can’t find your vaccine records?
If you need official copies of your vaccine records, or if you need to update your personal records:
Haemophilus influenzae type B (Hib) can cause severe infections, particularly among infants. The most common types of diseases caused by typeable H. influenzae infections, including Hib, include:
Less common infections include endocarditis and osteomyelitis.
CDC recommends routine administration of a conjugate Hib vaccine series beginning at age 2 months. Infants 2 through 6 months of age should receive a primary series of one of the following vaccines:
The first dose can be administered as early as age 6 weeks.
Administer a booster dose of ActHIB®, Hiberix®, Pentacel®, or PedvaxHIB® at aged 12 through 15 months.
Catch -up vaccination guidance for Hib vaccination for children aged 4 months through 4 years of age when using PedvaxHib can be found here. Additional catch-up guidance for other Hib vaccines is available here.
Young American Indian and Alaska Native children have a 31-fold higher incidence of invasive Hib disease than non-Native children. Vaxelis and PedvaxHib are preferred for use in American Indian and Alaskan Native infants based on the Hib component because these vaccines provide protective antibody response after the first dose.
Hib vaccine is not recommended for most people 5 years of age or older unless they:
Single antigen Hib vaccines (PedvaxHB, ActHib, and Hiberix) can be given to older children and adults who need Hib vaccination.
Hib vaccines are highly effective in producing immunity to Hib bacteria. More than 95% of infants develop protective antibody levels after receiving a primary series of 2 or 3 doses of Hib vaccine.
| Trade Name |
Manufacturer |
Components |
Primary series |
Booster dose |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PedvaxHIB** |
Merck |
Hib |
2, 4 mos |
12 - 15 mos |
| ActHIB |
Sanofi Pasteur |
Hib |
2, 4, 6 mos |
12 - 15 mos |
| Hiberix |
GlaxoSmithKline |
Hib |
2, 4, 6 mos |
12–15 mos† |
| Pentacel |
Sanofi Pasteur |
DTaP/IPV + Hib |
2, 4, 6 mos |
12–15 mos* |
| Vaxelis** |
Sanofi Pasteur |
DTaP-IPV - Hib – Hep B |
2, 4, 6 mos§ |
Not recommended for the booster dose |
*The recommended age for dose 4 of DTaP-IPV/Hib (Pentacel) is age 15 through 18 months, but it can be administered as early as 12 months, provided at least 6 months have elapsed since dose 3.
†The recommended age for dose 4 of Hib (PRP-T) (Hiberix) is age 15 months, but to facilitate timely booster vaccination, it may be administered as early as age 12 months.
§The recommended minimum age for dose 3 of DTaP-IPV-Hib-HepB (Vaxelis) is 24 weeks, the minimum age for completion of the hepatitis B vaccine series.
** Vaxelis and PedvaxHIb arethe preferred for American Indian and Alaska Native infants for the Hib component.
Please contact the LAC DPH Vaccine-Preventable Disease Control Program to report a case, obtain any other technical assistance with specimen collection or completion of forms for Haemophilus influenzae.
Confirmed or suspected cases of invasive Haemophilus influenzae disease, any serotype, in children less than 5 years of age are to be reported within 1 working day from identification, by telephone to Los Angeles County Public Health Department. (Title 17, Section 2500, California Code of Regulations).
Non-invasive cases including conjunctivitis and positive sputum culture without pneumonia or epiglottitis, and invasive cases confirmed not to be serotype b over the age of five do not require investigation nor reporting.
Click here for more information on reporting a Vaccine Adverse Event.
Although culture is the gold standard for confirming H. influenzae, real-time PCR is an accepted alternative.
The diagnosis of invasive disease is established by the growth of H. influenzae from a normally sterile body site (e.g., cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), blood, joint fluid, pleural fluid, pericardial fluid, peritoneal fluid, subcutaneous tissue fluid, placenta, and amniotic fluid).
All H. influenzae isolates associated with invasive disease in children <5 years of age should be serotyped. Contact the Public Health Laboratory to schedule isolate pickup for serotyping at (562) 658-1460.
Invasive Hib disease generally requires hospitalization. Antimicrobial therapy with an effective, third-generation cephalosporin (cefotaxime or ceftriaxone) should be started .
Post exposure prophylaxis should be recommended as the risk of invasive Hib disease is increased among un- or under-immunized household contacts <4 years of age. Rifampin eradicates Hib from the pharynx in approximately 95% of carriers and decreases the risk of secondary invasive disease in exposed household contacts.
Indications and guidelines for chemoprophylaxis in different circumstances are described in the AAP Red Book and summarized in the CDPH Quicksheet for Hflu.
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Public Health has made reasonable efforts to provide accurate translation. However, no computerized translation is perfect and is not intended to replace traditional translation methods. If questions arise concerning the accuracy of the information, please refer to the English edition of the website, which is the official version.
