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Guilford County Department of Public Health will hold a free mobile clinic to vaccinate children 12 years old or entering the sixth grade.

North Carolina law requires rising sixth-graders, or children turning 12 on or after Aug. 1, to get a Tdap (tetanus, diphtheria, pertussis) booster shot if five or more years have passed since their last dose of this vaccine.

Students who don't have records of up-to-date immunizations can be suspended from school.

Department of Public Health will be giving the vaccine from 1 to 4 p.m. July 22 at the Lane Drug Store parking lot in the Benbow Professional Center at 2021 Martin Luther King Drive.

Shots will be provided inside the High Point Regional Health System mobile medical unit.

Parents or legal guardians are asked to bring their child's shot record with them to the clinic.

In addition, a registered dental hygienist with the Department of Public Health will provide a dental screening to children between the ages of 5 and 18. No appointment is necessary.

"We want to help parents get an early start to assure their children are prepared for school from a health standpoint," said Merle Green, health director.

Tdap vaccine can protect adolescents and adults against tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis, which are all caused by bacteria.

Diphtheria and pertussis are spread from person to person.

Tetanus, also known as lockjaw, enters the body through cuts, scratches, or wounds and causes painful tightening of the muscles, usually all over the body. It can lead to "locking" of the jaw so the victim cannot open his mouth or swallow and could be deadly. Diphtheria causes a thick covering in the back of the throat. It can lead to breathing problems, paralysis, heart failure and even death. Pertussis, also known as whooping cough, causes severe coughing spells, vomiting and disturbed sleep. It can lead to weight loss, incontinence, rib fractures and passing out from violent coughing, pneumonia, and hospitalization due to complications.

For more information about these and other services, call 641-7777 or visit www.guilfordhealth.org.

Contact Adria Hairston at 883-4422, Ext. 244 or adria.hairston@news-record.com