Talk to me about Hep A

[isign]

I have a family member insisting that hep A vaxs are important in our area. His reasoning I'm still scratching my head, as they make no sense to me. I found CDC disease burden, but I'm not sure I'm 100% understanding it. I'm also looking for something newer than 2007.

If I'm correct, in 2007, there were only 25,000 new cases reported? I'm trying to find the stats on 2009.

[poppan]

I think that CDC chart was saying there were an estimated 25,000 cases in 2007 (not 25,000 reported cases). And of those, an estimated 13,000 cases were acute (more serious symptoms, lasting longer).

I think you should start with reading up on how Hep A affects adults and children (it affects adults more seriously than children). And not sure how old your child is, but the vaccine is safer for a 2 y.o. than for a 1 y.o., I believe the manufacturer recommends that it be given to age 2 and over only, but CDC has it on the schedule at 12 months old against all these recommendations.

Here are links from Dr Sears' website and Mayo clinic.
http://www.askdrsears.com/html/8/T084600.asp
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/hepatitis-a/DS00397

The short version is that Hep A, unlike other forms of hepatitis, is not a chronic infection. Adults might have symptoms for 6 weeks to 3 months, and more rarely crossing over into 6 months, but when you get over it, it doesn't come back. In rare, acute cases you can sustain liver damage, but that seems to mostly affect people who already have liver problems or are immuno-compromised in some other way. The disease is more serious in adults than in children under 12 (and especially children under 6).

[isign]

Thanks. It wasn't on the list I was given from the ped when my first was born. I'll leave this vax up to my kids to decide on when they get older.

[Lisa1970]

You need to consider also if having the disease would be so much worse than the vaccination. Read books or links about it dated from before the vaccination comes out. I find it interesting when I read a book from before the shots that say the disease is not a big deal. Then once the shot comes out, all we hear is how terrible the disease and deadly.

I would never ever get the Hep A shot. Try googling Hepatitis A and "aborted human embryo" and decide if you are willing to have that injected your child with that.

[MilkbarMom]

My daughter and family friends all got Hep A at the same time. It was MILD in my 3 year old daughter...flu like, tired, chalky colored poop...no big deal. It was AWFUL in the adults, non-stop vomiting, pain, dehydration, jaundice, and required a couple of weeks in the hospital. My husband and I had been vaccinated so we did not get it, and my younger nursing daughter did not get it. I will vaccinate my younger daughter that did not get it when she is a teenager, so that she is somewhat protected as an adult from it.

Just wanted to share my experience with it.

[Turquesa]

Originally Posted by Lisa1970

I find it interesting when I read a book from before the shots that say the disease is not a big deal. Then once the shot comes out, all we hear is how terrible the disease and deadly.

Ooo yea! A shan't-be-named prominent organization used to tell us that HPV wasn't a big deal, most cases went away on their own, the cancer-causing stains were extremely rare, and paps were your ticket to avoiding cervical cancer. Now that it's started pushing Gardasil, that's all changed

I've found the same thing with Chicken Pox.

One of these days, somebody is going to come out with a vax for the common cold. It will be pushed on parents with the following guilt trip: "Young parents don't know what it was like back in the dark ages of the common cold..."

Sorry. I digress. OP, the Hep A vaccine doesn't do anything that clean hands, clean food, and clean water can't do.