01/09/2026
👶🎉 Expecting or recently welcomed another baby to your family? You might be expecting some things to be different, and the vaccine schedule for your baby is one thing that will be.
At the start of this year, the routine childhood vaccination schedule changed. Babies are now offered protection against chickenpox alongside measles, mumps and rubella through the introduction of the MMRV vaccine, which is already part of routine childhood vaccination programmes in several countries, including Canada, Australia and Germany.
🧑🍼💬 "But why make changes? Isn't chickenpox usually mild?"
While most children experience chickenpox as a mild illness, it can sometimes be more serious and require hospital treatment. In rare cases, it can lead to complications such as chest infections, seizures and encephalitis (inflammation of the brain). The MMRV vaccine helps protect children against four serious diseases: measles, mumps, rubella, and chickenpox, while the introduction of the 18-month appointment will help provide them with protection at a younger age.
