To Vax or Not To Vax... Open Questions

[ejsr]

I have a 3 month old baby and have been doing research for the past 3 months trying to decide if and when I want her to get any vaccines. I would like to decide based on the numbers if I can, but I am missing a lot of key information. I know that it is difficult because much has to be projected because many vaccine reactions are not reported and there are not accurate numbers on any of this, but if any of you know a good book or papers online where I can find a summary of these things so I can make an informed/statistical decision I would really appreciate it. Here are the main things I feel I am still missing:

-what percent of unvaccinated people get the disease each year (number of unvax and the number that get the disease) and what % of vax get it (and also vax and unvax by different age groups)

-% of unvax and vax with serious cases of the disease (by age group)

-% of vax with serious side effects from the vax

-what is the difference of reaction if you get the vax at different ages (I have heard under 1yr is better, many people wait until 2yr, and what if you wait even longer, are there stats on the reactions at different ages)

-what is the difference of effectiveness if you get the vax at different ages, and why for some vax you only need one shot if you wait for the baby to be older

-can the disease be transmitted by vaccinated people

-disease prevalence in other countries (list of countries and number of cases of the disease)

-what is the difference in effectiveness between the TIB and the T/DT/DTaP shot

-what is so magical about the age of 7 for no longer getting the DTaP and for being able to now get the DT/T

Any information is greatly appreciated. I am not going to give her any shots until I feel I have all of the information I need. I am making a detailed table with all of this info, if anyone else has done this maybe you have the pieces I am missing? I would be happy to share mine when it is done too.

Thank you all!

[Marnica]

Originally Posted by ejsr

I have a 3 month old baby and have been doing research for the past 3 months trying to decide if and when I want her to get any vaccines. I would like to decide based on the numbers if I can, but I am missing a lot of key information. I know that it is difficult because much has to be projected because many vaccine reactions are not reported and there are not accurate numbers on any of this, but if any of you know a good book or papers online where I can find a summary of these things so I can make an informed/statistical decision I would really appreciate it. Here are the main things I feel I am still missing:

-what percent of unvaccinated people get the disease each year (number of unvax and the number that get the disease) and what % of vax get it (and also vax and unvax by different age groups)

-% of unvax and vax with serious cases of the disease (by age group)

-% of vax with serious side effects from the vax

-what is the difference of reaction if you get the vax at different ages (I have heard under 1yr is better, many people wait until 2yr, and what if you wait even longer, are there stats on the reactions at different ages)

-what is the difference of effectiveness if you get the vax at different ages, and why for some vax you only need one shot if you wait for the baby to be older

-can the disease be transmitted by vaccinated people

-disease prevalence in other countries (list of countries and number of cases of the disease)

-what is the difference in effectiveness between the TIB and the T/DT/DTaP shot

-what is so magical about the age of 7 for no longer getting the DTaP and for being able to now get the DT/T

Any information is greatly appreciated. I am not going to give her any shots until I feel I have all of the information I need. I am making a detailed table with all of this info, if anyone else has done this maybe you have the pieces I am missing? I would be happy to share mine when it is done too.

Thank you all!

-what percent of unvaccinated people get the disease each year (number of unvax and the number that get the disease) and what % of vax get it (and also vax and unvax by different age groups)

-% of unvax and vax with serious cases of the disease (by age group)

I think you may have trouble finding all of this info. For disease stats I would take a look at this: http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/

-% of vax with serious side effects from the vax

For stats on serious side effects I think all you can do is look at the VEARS database, http://vaers.hhs.gov/ but this does not accurately reflect the true numbers. It is estimated that less than 10% of serious side effects are reported. Most MD's deny that serious side effects are vaccine related and will blame them on something else or say it is a cooincidence.

-can the disease be transmitted by vaccinated people

Some of the vaccines do not prevent transmission and some are live viruses that shed so yes, vaccinated people can and do transmit disease.

I'm glad ytou are waiting until you feel you have all of the information before you vaccinate Good Luck and enjoy your baby! They grow up so fast!!!

[eliotsmommy]

Good for you for thinking it through ahead of time... your baby is lucky to have a mom who is taking the responsibility for protecting her health on herself rather than simply relying on others.

One thing I thought you might want to consider is not just basing it on the numbers and statistics, but tailoring it to your baby in some ways by answering questions like: will my baby be exposed regularly to other young children (daycare, siblings)? will we be traveling outside of the US (assuming you live in the US)? are there any known or likely hereditary issues that might lead to an unusual immune system reaction (for vax or natural disease)? is my baby exclusively breastfed, and if so, given my own vax/disease history, what immunological protections is that likely to afford?

Maybe you were already considering those, but just in case... HTH!

[mamakay]

-what is so magical about the age of 7 for no longer getting the DTaP and for being able to now get the DT/T

It used to be that the pertussis component was considered "too reactive" in people over 7, but that problem is now gone with the TDaP, a pertussis vax for older kids, teens, and adults, which simply has a smaller dose of the pertussis antigens than the Dtap does.

-can the disease be transmitted by vaccinated people

As a general rule, pertussis, diphtheria, polio (if we're talking IPV) are not vaccines that prevent transmission. The MMR and chickenpox do creat the sort of immunity that prevents transmission. And the bacterial meningitis vaxes are....complicated (it's a "yes and no" sort of situation.)

why for some vax you only need one shot if you wait for the baby to be older

Because the baby's already had the disease (usually via colonization without symptoms) and is already mostly immune, I think.

[ejsr]

Thanks to all of you that have answered so far!

Me and my boyfriend were vaxed but for some that was over 30 yrs ago, and for others probably 10 yrs, I know they wear off, I found out I needed Rubella again before I got pregnant and we were living in Germany where this is more prevalent.
Neither of us had any reaction and we have nothing in our family that would make our daughter at high risk.
I am breastfeeding and she is not in daycare, but will still be exposed to other children at times.
We do live in the US, but in California where there is high immigration and tourism and we will travel to Europe very often.
I want to feel free to travel with her (which means airplanes with people from everywhere sharing air, yuck!) and not be afraid to have her around other children, although all of this makes me want to move to a large ranch in Montana and become healthy hermits!

I will look at all of your suggestions, and more are welcome, thanks again!

[just_lily]

I would love to have answers to all of your questions too, but from what I have been able to find, they don't exist. That is what I find the most frustrating. I am extremely annoyed by the fact that parents need to make this very important decision without all the facts.

I have a seven month old who has never, and most likely will never, be vaxed. We aren't hermits. I do home daycare, we go to several playgroups, and I wouldn't hesitate to get on a plane with her. To me, it makes no sense to not vax and then live in fear.

[ejsr]

I agree with you! I think if I get enough information so that I can confidently say that for me it is more risky to vax then not. Even if she did get a disease that she could have been vaxed for I will have no regrets because I would have made an informed wise choice. I just feel that I need some more info still to get to this point. Thanks