vaccinating child with cystic fibrosis

[FancyD]

I'm checking for a friend... her son was just diagnosed with cystic fibrosis at six months. She had already determined that she would not vaccinate her son... and was ready to go head-to-head with health care providers. However, she is under a lot of extra pressure now, from not just the medical practitioners, but from the cf community, and family. She is looking for more info regarding the vaccinating of immuno-compromised children. More specifically, the CF doctor is pushing Hib, Pertussis, and Polio vaccinations. Any info or leads regarding these vaccines would be appreciated. Thanks.

[Electra375]

I think the risk to such a child is only as great as the risk to the general poplulation in contracting the disease. I would research what diseases that are vax preventable are prevellent in the area she and her son live as a starting point.

Then the other issue is his life span is significantly shortened by CF, will a vax worsen that or make it better. We know vaxes are not 100% effective, but how effective is each one weighed against the % chance of contracting the disease and % of that causing permature death in an immune compromised lung system. That is obviously a personal decision.

I am so sorry for this mama, she has a lot on her plate all at once and not a lot of time to grasp it all before decisions like this one need to be evaluated.

I have a child with an auto-immune disorder and deficient in 1 antibody. He is not vaxed. However, he is healthy and can recover just like any other child if he were to get say Pertusis. I won't even begin to say what I would do with a child with CF, pertusis could be very bad for such a child. Anything involving respiratory distress such as Rubella, Measles, Mumps, pertusis, diptheria, Hib, pneumonia, flu etc I would have to really way the pros and cons and frankly I might come up with a yes vax.

Dispite my very non-vax beliefs, I still think that in some cases vaxing is a wise choice and the lesser of 2 evils so to speak.

I debated the pneumonia vax for my oldest as he seemed suseptible to it. Ulimately I decided against it b/c he did not catch pneumonia after a bout with the flu and I got a serious sinus infection this past year. I was very worried that as I was getting over the flu I would be handling pneumonia with him. If he had, I don't think I would have given it another thought since I had already researched it. And if he gets pneumonia again ever, I will also reconsider just because the damage done by pneumonia is irreversible.

On a personal note, I never saw the flu as that big of a deal, of course, I'd never had the flu. The flu in my children was fever and respiratory for a few days. The flu in me was fever, respiratory and painful for over a week. I didn't even know we had the "FLU", I thought we were just sick with a typical winter virus. I didn't know the flu was respiratory, I always thought intestinal related with a cold maybe. I definitely saw why doctors want to prescribe the flu vax to elderly patients. The flu in a healthy adult, me, was managable with my inhaler for allergy induced asthma, I got a secondary sinus infection and was sick for a total of 3 weeks. I can't imagine that bug in a person who is sick to begin with, it might very well be their death. I also can see why the flu would be the death of infants, the high fever was dehydrating quickly and my kids just wanted to sleep, so they were not drinking. Before I got sick as well I was keeping on top of that, once I got sick with my dd I was glad she was nursing, but I needed to drink plenty of fluids and it was not easy.

If I had a child with CF, I would consider researching all the angles of the flu shot. I understand it is somewhat ineffective, but I would way that against the risk of actually contracting the flu now that I have personally experienced having the flu. It would definitely land a CF child in the hospital IMO.

No I won't be going to get a flu shot, we survived and fortunately my FP doc does not push flu vax on healthy adults. He was more than happy to see me after the flu and treat me for secondary infections and not berate me for not having a flu shot. Again the flu shot was invented to help those who needed it not be a mass populus vax and I think they are working hard to make it safer, more effective and less of a guessing game.

[~member~]

Originally Posted by FancyD

I'm checking for a friend... her son was just diagnosed with cystic fibrosis at six months. She had already determined that she would not vaccinate her son... and was ready to go head-to-head with health care providers. However, she is under a lot of extra pressure now, from not just the medical practitioners, but from the cf community, and family. She is looking for more info regarding the vaccinating of immuno-compromised children. More specifically, the CF doctor is pushing Hib, Pertussis, and Polio vaccinations. Any info or leads regarding these vaccines would be appreciated. Thanks.

Here is a thread about nutrition.

http://www.mothering.com/discussions...is#post4605778
Here is some info about what is in the vaccines that you might want to cross-refernce with CF, especially in regards to the pancreas and Central Nervous System.

6 vaccines (polio, hepatitis B, hepatitis A, pertussis, diptheria and tetnus) contain formaldehyde – a highly noxious and carcinogenic preservative.

http://www.childbirthsolutions.com/a...cine/index.php

Here is the link to get you to each package insert.
http://www.vaccinesafety.edu/thi-table.htm

[aniT]

I have no advise on the vaccines but I did want to say my half sister had CF and diabetes type 1. She died at the age of 40 from insulin shock. Had she only had CF she would probably still be alive. I am just sharing so your friend knows that some children with CF can still go on to live long lives.

[wonderwahine]

I dont have any info, But If I had a child with cf (and in my childhood I've known 2 kids who had it and were high functioning with early diagnosis and therapy) I wouldn't vax at all. Same with any medical problem, I wouldnt give them to a preemie, or even a prefect normal full term baby. IMO its just not worh the risk, especially when that risk of reactions increases with medical problems already exsisting.

[FancyD]

Originally Posted by romans_mum

IMO its just not worh the risk, especially when that risk of reactions increases with medical problems already exsisting.

How/why does the reaction rate increase?

[wonderwahine]

usually because the immune system isnt as strong, or the medical condition affects certain organs eg the lungs, so when you add a respritory toxin (which is in vaxes) into the mix, your child will have a higher chance of a reaction.

also with some pre-exsisting contions, you also have the kids on medications, so they can cause interactions and reactions to.

[minkl]

I wish I could point you in a more solid direction, but I have read *somewhere* about methylation issues with CF that sometimes overlaps with the genetics of autistic children. So if underlying genetic problems with methylation in CF make a child particularly sensitive to vaccine reactions and heavy metal loads, I would be extremely cautious about vaccinating. I know this information is out there, so I hope your friend can google and learn more before making this very imporant decision.