Most men last thought about vaccination in a school gymnasium. After that the subject disappears, apart from the occasional tetanus shot in an emergency department after a nail through a boot, and the annual flu clinic that gets skipped because the week was busy. The result is a large population of adult men whose protection has quietly lapsed and who have never been offered several vaccines that were introduced after they left school.
This is not a matter of doing everything available. It is a matter of knowing which few apply, and most men need a short list rather than a long one. A physician reviewing immunisation history is looking at age, occupation, health conditions, travel and what was received previously — and for many men the review takes a couple of minutes and results in one or two shots.
The Core Adult Vaccines
Tetanus and diphtheria protection requires a booster every ten years, and the interval is where most adults fall behind. Tetanus spores live in soil and are a genuine occupational consideration for men working in agriculture, construction and anywhere involving equipment, rust and dirt. One dose in adulthood is usually given as Tdap, which includes pertussis — whooping cough — and is particularly relevant for men who will be around a newborn, since adults are the usual source of infection in infants.
Shingles vaccination is recommended for adults from age fifty. Shingles is a reactivation of the chickenpox virus that has been dormant in nerve tissue since childhood, and its main consequence is not the rash but postherpetic neuralgia — nerve pain that can persist for months or years afterwards and is difficult to treat. The current vaccine is given as two doses and is highly effective. It is recommended regardless of whether a man remembers having chickenpox.
Pneumococcal vaccination protects against a bacterium that causes pneumonia, bloodstream infection and meningitis. It is recommended for adults aged sixty-five and older, and earlier for men with chronic lung disease, heart disease, diabetes, liver disease, an absent or non-functioning spleen, or a compromised immune system.
Influenza vaccination is annual, because the virus changes and immunity wanes. The argument for it in working-age men is less about personal severity and more about not losing a week of work and not carrying it into a household with an infant or an elderly parent. COVID-19 vaccination follows periodically updated guidance based on age and health conditions.
Vaccines Tied to Specific Circumstances
HPV vaccination is now available to adult men and is worth raising specifically, because many men assume it applies only to women or only to teenagers. HPV causes genital warts and contributes to cancers of the throat, anus and penis in men. Vaccination is most effective before exposure but retains value afterwards, and eligibility extends further into adulthood than most men realise.
Hepatitis B vaccination is recommended for men with multiple sexual partners, men who have sex with men, anyone who injects drugs, health care and emergency workers, men with chronic liver or kidney disease, and travellers to regions where it is common. Hepatitis A is added for certain travel and occupational exposures. Both are given as a short series and provide long-lasting protection.
Travel raises its own requirements, and these depend entirely on destination and timing — a conversation best had several weeks before departure rather than the week of.
Reviewing Where You Stand
Alberta maintains immunisation records, and a physician can generally establish what has been given. Where records are incomplete, which is common for men who moved provinces or countries, the usual approach is either to test for immunity or simply to re-vaccinate, both of which are safe.
The practical point is that this is not an appointment on its own for most men. It is a question worth raising during a visit already happening for something else — a physical, bloodwork, a chronic condition review — and it closes a gap that most men do not know they have.
Dr. Raymond Nash provides preventive care and immunisation review at Grande Prairie Men’s Medical Clinic. To book, visit gpmm.clinic or telephone (587) 416-8296. This article contains general information only and does not replace advice tailored to your own health.