An Introduction to Dosing With MMR
The dosage of MMR vaccine (officially known as M-M-R® II) your healthcare provider recommends will vary, depending on the following factors:
- Your age
- Your previous vaccination history.
Typical MMR Vaccination Schedule
For most children, the standard MMR dosing schedule consists of two doses. The first is given at 12 to 15 months of age, and the second is given just before entering elementary school. In outbreak situations, MMR can be given to infants as young as six months old, although the normal two doses will still be necessary.
The second MMR dose can be given as soon as 28 days after the first dose, if desired.
Interestingly, the second dosage of MMR is not a "booster" dose (designed to provide additional protection from the diseases). Instead, it is used to provide immunity for the small but significant portion of people who fail to respond to the first dose.
Depending on your state requirements for school entry, your child may be able to skip the second dose if you can provide documentation (through blood tests known as "titers") that your child is immune to
measles,
mumps, and
rubella. In rare cases, individuals may fail to respond to two doses.
Other Vaccination Schedules
In general, the MMR vaccine is also recommended for adults who cannot provide documentation of previous vaccination with MMR (or of immunity through a titer blood test). At least one dosage (perhaps two) may be recommended in such situations.
Also, some parents prefer to avoid combination vaccines, choosing to use individual vaccines instead. At this time, individual measles, mumps, and
rubella vaccines are not available, although Merck states that they may possibly be available again sometime in the future.
