Diphtheria Basics

There are several combination vaccines used to prevent diphtheria: diphtheria-tetanus-acellular pertussis (DTaP) vaccine and diphtheria-tetanus (DT) for children younger than seven years of age and tetanus-diphtheria (Td) and tetanus-diphtheria-acellular pertussis (Tdap) for older children and adults.

• Diphtheria Vaccine Information Statements (VIS)
  CDC Vaccine Information Statement: includes a description of the disease, who should get the vaccine and when, who should not be vaccinated, and potential side effects.
  • CDC: DTaP (Diphtheria, Tetanus, Pertussis) Vaccine VIS
  • CDC: Tdap (Tetanus, Diphtheria, Pertussis) Vaccine VIS
  • CDC: Td (Tetanus, Diphtheria) Vaccine VIS