Alternative Vaccine Schedule?

[TyrantOfTheWeek]

I vaccinate my kiddos, and was wondering if anyone knew of a decent alternative schedule...Thanks in advance!

[evinmom]

Everyone I know highly recommends getting "The Vaccine Book" by Dr. Robert Sears. I believe it is available at the library if you don't want to buy it. On another site someone posted the first 5 years from the book.

2 months DTaP, Rotavirus

3 months Pc, HIB

4 months DTaP, Rotavirus

5 months Pc, HIB

6 months DTaP, Rotavirus

7 months Pc, HIB

9 months Polio

12 months Mumps, Polio

15 months Pc, HIB

18 months DTaP, Chickenpox

2 years Rubella, Polio

2 yrs 6 months Hep B, Hep A

3 years Hep B, Measles

3 yrs 6 months Hep B, Hep A

4 years DTaP, Polio

5 years MMR

FWIW - I know 2 babies who had some scary reactions to the Rotavirus vax which I believe is optional on the regular schedule.

[TyrantOfTheWeek]

That looks like that may work. I just am not digging the whole "5 vaccines at once" thing.

[Tattooed Hand]

Someone named Stephanie Cave has one too. I modified hers (and Dr. Sear's to make our own) since I am not doing all of them (no rotavirus, flu shots, chicken pox and some others) and wanting to start a bit later and space them out.

This is SC's:

Stephanie Cave's recommendations:

Hep B:
If mother is Hep B positive or her status unknown: Give at birth, then
follow CDC recommended schedule.
If mother is Heb B negative: Wait until just before starting day care, or,
if not in day care, until the year before starting school. Give the second
shot one month after the first; give the third shot four months after the
first.

Hib, IPV (polio), DTaP:
4 months: Hib and IPV
5 months: DTap

6 months: Hib, IPV
7 months: DTaP

8 months: Hib
9 months: DTaP

17 months: Hib, IPV
18 months: DTaP

Boosters: 4-5 years of age for DTaP and IPV.

(Make sure all are mercury free.)

Prevnar:
Doesn't recommend prior to age 2, and then 1 dose.

Varicella:
Give close to school age (age 4-5) if mandated and if child is not immune to
chicken pox based on a blood test.

MMR:
Give in separate vaccines: measles at 15 months, rubella a year later and
mumps a year after rubella. Give boosters at age 4-5, during the six months
before your child starts school. You could ask your doctor to check the
titers for immunity to the MMR and skip the booster if your child is already
immune and your state allows proof of immunity in place of the shots.
Recheck titers at 12 years.

[lalemma]

I don't think the separate MMR vaccines are currently available (Merck is supposed to start making them again at some point).

[Tattooed Hand]

I know, I hope by the time we want to give them to her, they'll make it again. They also don't make the separate Tetnus and diptheria shots anymore, which sucks...

[nina_yyc]

I'm doing the Dtap-IPV-Hib combo and the MMR one per month starting at the age of two. Declining Prevnar and Meningococcal, declining flu vax, declining chicken pox until the age of 5. rotavirus and HepA/B aren't on the standard schedule here. After 2 I am going to go with the standard schedule.

[carmel23]

we were following the Dr. Sear's vaccine schedule, but now we may switch it up and follow the regular schedule regarding the pertussis. I'll have to check. We had a pertussis 'scare' and the test to confirm whether it is pertussis or not takes forever... by the time we have a confirmed case, its too late to treat in little babies like this, so the Dr. decided to treat anyway. (more in weekly chat).

Which I agreed with, since the harm that pertussis can do to an infant is not worth risking, in my opinion.

The chicken pox vaccine doesn't really bother me, since it is over 30 years old, and has been used in Japan since then. But we delay that until school, and if we haven't had it, then we get the vaccine then.

[4Blessings]

Originally Posted by lalemma

I don't think the separate MMR vaccines are currently available (Merck is supposed to start making them again at some point).

Check out the vaccine forum. Production was supposed to begin again this year on the separate MMR again but will not happen.

We loosely follow the Sears schedule with our 2 yr old and will do the same with this baby. I do delay the chicken pox vax (would rather have natural immunity) and MMR.
We skip the flu shots.