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Public Health & Epidemiology vocabulary · Prevention and Vaccination

Booster dose

Meaning in public health & epidemiology, with examples

nounCommon term

In public health & epidemiology, booster dose means: An extra dose of a vaccine given some time after the first doses to restore or strengthen protection that has faded over time.

In Turkish: rapel doz, pekiştirme dozu, hatırlatma dozu

How it is used

Often simply called a booster. Many countries give tetanus and diphtheria boosters at set intervals, and COVID-19 boosters became widely known. People get, receive or are offered a booster dose; waning immunity is the usual reason for one.

Example sentences

  1. Older adults were offered a booster dose before winter.

  2. Protection wanes after a few years, so a booster dose is needed.

Common collocations

  • receive a booster dose
  • booster shot
  • booster campaign
  • waning immunity
  • vaccinationGiving a vaccine to a person so that their immune system learns to protect them against a specific infectious disease.
  • immunization scheduleThe official timetable that sets which vaccines people should receive, at what ages and in how many doses, in a particular country.
  • vaccination coverageThe percentage of people in a target group who have received a particular vaccine or all the required doses, such as children who had two doses of measles vaccine by age two.
  • herd immunityIndirect protection that happens when enough people in a community are immune to an infection, so it cannot spread easily and even unprotected people are less likely to catch it.

More terms: Prevention and Vaccination

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This page explains English vocabulary for learners. It is not medical advice.