Pros/Cons of Prevnar???

[zachattack]

We are considering giving our 5 month old Prevnar. He was breastfed for 3 months-(Mother got bronchitis-went on antibiotics-major probs restarting-I know the benefits of nursing) Anyway - Our son received HIB at month 3- no other vaxs
We are not considering any other vaxs until at least he is one year. Even at the point we are going to be highly selective in the vaxs he gets.
So...please help me understand the benefits and risks of prevnar- thanks

[13Sandals]

Hi and welcome!

here's the basic con on prevnar. It only targets a handful of bacteria that can cause any number of disease, from ear infections to meningitis. The initial incidence of serious disease went down with prevnar (which originally targeted 7 bacterial strains) but then, after a few years in the population, the disease rates started coming back up - only the disease was now being caused by bacteria that was not targeted in the vaccine.

Bacteria competes for competition in the body, so you knock out 7 strains, more will just take its place - and sometimes the replacements can be more deadly than the original.... One strain that emerged after Prevnar use was strain 19A which happened to be antibiotic resistant. So they have just come out with prevnar II which includes the original 7 strains plus 6 more (including 19A). So we knock out 13 bacterial strains, which ones will now move in to take their place? That's the con. If you think you can get ahead of the bacteria altogether than it seems like a good idea....but I'm a little more pessimistic about that eventuality!

You can google serotype replacement and prevnar and come up with some articles.

And btw - there is a great swedish study that shows breastfeeding for 3 months provides excellent long-term protection against HiB.

[beesknees]

Originally Posted by 13Sandals

And btw - there is a great swedish study that shows breastfeeding for 3 months provides excellent long-term protection against HiB.

Hi,

In France when looking at vaccine recommendations Prevnar was recommended only if there was two months or less of breastfeeding.

Good Luck with your decision.

[Sileree]

Originally Posted by beesknees

Hi,

In France when looking at vaccine recommendations Prevnar was recommended only if there was two months or less of breastfeeding.

Good Luck with your decision.

That's interesting!

[Marnica]

Originally Posted by beesknees

Hi,

In France when looking at vaccine recommendations Prevnar was recommended only if there was two months or less of breastfeeding.

Good Luck with your decision.

That is interesting......do you happen to have any links to info about this??

[bbrandonsmom]

Here's a link w/ a bunch of info
http://insidevaccines.com/wordpress/...ines-work/hib/

I'd be interested in that study/link too if you have it.