[LilacMama]

My daughter is 7 weeks old and I'm considering the DTaP vaccine for her. I've read through Dr. Sears' book and the CDC's Pink Book.<br><br>
Help me out here -- The Pink Book says that 85% of the deaths related to pertussis were in infants under 3 months of age. Well, they don't start vaccinating until 2 months of age! Furthermore, it says that the vaccine is 70%+ effective AFTER 3 doses. Ummmm? By the time she's 6 months old and has gotten a full 3 doses, the chances of her having a long-term complication from the disease are VERY low -- right?<br><br>
So, currently I'm thinking I'll forgo this. I WILL feel like a horrible parent if she ends up with a bad case of pertussis. But it seems like, most likely, it will not cause permanent damage. The CDC DOES say that the disease can cause permanent neurological damage due to hypoxia but does not have any stats for it. A vaccine reaction might cause permanent damage and of course we don't have any real stats for that. DAMN IT!!! This sucks.<br><br>
Does contracting pertussis offer lifelong immunity?<br><br>
Please tell me what you decided about this vaccine, your reasons, and if you regret it or not. Thanks.

 

[carriebft]

studies show that immunity from the vaccine lasts 2-15 years while immunity from the disease lasts 4-20 years. I can pull that up for you if you would like to see it. In addition, there are studies being conducted right now (and many already done) on the question of changing the 'birth vaccine' from Hep B to DTaP for exact reasons you are talking about.<br><br>
We decided to do this vaccine because I feel that pertussis is something I would not even want at 6+ months. I figure the vaccine works pretty well and has been shown to lessen the severity of the disease if it is contracted, so we go with it (also D and T too but that's just my reasoning on P).

 

[~Ryleigh's Mommy~]

contracting the disease would get you "better" immunity than the vaccine. But what I'm wondering, is with a disease like pertussis, why does this matter?<br>
There are some diseases I would rather children catch, so to have good protection as adults (measles, chickenpox, rubella) because those diseases are mild in children and severe in adults.<br>
However, pertussis is life threatening in infants and usually NOT in adults. So I'm not sure I see any "benefit" for an infant catching it and getting the "better" immunity for adulthood??<br><br>
And yes, it does take 3 doses to get the FULL immunity, but that does not mean it doesn't start working until then. With each dose, there is more and more immunity. So even if your child still gets pertussis after 1 or 2 shots, the disease with *likely* (likely because there is no way to say for sure because each case is different) to have a milder case than most severe of cases.<br><br>
Pertussis isn't a "little cough" that they have for "a few days".<br><br>
Do some research into how severe the cough is (think: hypoxia, broken ribs) and to HOW LONG the disease persists (think WEEKS).<br>
Also, look into the long term damage to the lungs the disease can cause.<br>
I don't want to sound like I'm using scare tactics or "touting the benefits" of the vaccine, hence why I'm saying to look those things up yourself and make your own decision.<br><br>
All that said, we decided to forgo DTaP until 2 yrs of age in our family. My children are not in daycare, and even though the baby (who is at most risk) is the only one that doesn't have the vax (the rest of the family is up to date) I am hoping that my breastmilk immunity, and the protection from the rest of us being vaxed is enough to protect baby until I feel comfortable giving this shot.<br>
Honestly, I feel like pertussis is one of the biggest risks to my baby out of all the vaxes there are. BUT, for some reason I am also the most "afraid" of the DTaP shot of all the vaxes. (don't ask me why....just a mommy gut feeling)<br>
So I "compromise" by having the rest of the family up to date, BFing, and limiting exposure until I feel comfortable with the jab.<br><br>
good luck with your decison!

 

[Super Glue Mommy]

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<div>Originally Posted by <strong>LilacMama</strong> <a href="/community/forum/post/13189508"><img alt="View Post" class="inlineimg" src="/community/img/forum/go_quote.gif" style="border:0px solid;"></a></div>
<div style="font-style:italic;">My daughter is 7 weeks old and I'm considering the DTaP vaccine for her. I've read through Dr. Sears' book and the CDC's Pink Book.<br><br>
Help me out here -- The Pink Book says that 85% of the deaths related to pertussis were in infants under 3 months of age. Well, they don't start vaccinating until 2 months of age! Furthermore, it says that the vaccine is 70%+ effective AFTER 3 doses. Ummmm? By the time she's 6 months old and has gotten a full 3 doses, the chances of her having a long-term complication from the disease are VERY low -- right?<br><br>
So, currently I'm thinking I'll forgo this. I WILL feel like a horrible parent if she ends up with a bad case of pertussis. But it seems like, most likely, it will not cause permanent damage. The CDC DOES say that the disease can cause permanent neurological damage due to hypoxia but does not have any stats for it. A vaccine reaction might cause permanent damage and of course we don't have any real stats for that. DAMN IT!!! This sucks.<br><br>
Does contracting pertussis offer lifelong immunity?<br><br>
Please tell me what you decided about this vaccine, your reasons, and if you regret it or not. Thanks.</div>
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all the reasons you have mentioned are the reasons we ended up passing up this particular vaccine. In the world of vaccine reactions this seems to be the one most parents say their children have reactions to. as for "reported" reactions I dont know I'm just talking about in casual experience I hear of a lot of bad reactions to this. Many still believe there is a connection between this vaccine and SIDS.<br><br>
My son, who was fully vaccinated on schedule, got Pertussis when my youngest was VERY young. we were all sick for a long time, but my youngest just had a mild common cold (he was breastfed). It's a terrible thing to have. I also had it once when I was in elementary school. the coughing fits get to bad they can make you throw up and sometimes i felt like it would never end long enough for me to breath. my kids got it bad too, but not terribly bad. (They are well fed and otherwise healthy, which is something that isnt usually considered in disease facts about how it effects people).<br><br>
so anyway, we weighed it out and chose not to get this vaxx for my youngest. and, like I said, when everyone in the house got P. my youngest just got a cold and ear infection, so IDK, I recommend breastfeeding over the DTaP.

 

[Super Glue Mommy]

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<div class="smallfont" style="margin-bottom:2px;">Quote:</div>
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<div>Originally Posted by <strong>~Ryleigh's Mommy~</strong> <a href="/community/forum/post/13189641"><img alt="View Post" class="inlineimg" src="/community/img/forum/go_quote.gif" style="border:0px solid;"></a></div>
<div style="font-style:italic;">contracting the disease would get you "better" immunity than the vaccine. But what I'm wondering, is with a disease like pertussis, why does this matter?<br>
There are some diseases I would rather children catch, so to have good protection as adults (measles, chickenpox, rubella) because those diseases are mild in children and severe in adults.<br>
However, pertussis is life threatening in infants and usually NOT in adults. So I'm not sure I see any "benefit" for an infant catching it and getting the "better" immunity for adulthood??<br><br>
And yes, it does take 3 doses to get the FULL immunity, but that does not mean it doesn't start working until then. With each dose, there is more and more immunity. So even if your child still gets pertussis after 1 or 2 shots, the disease with *likely* (likely because there is no way to say for sure because each case is different) to have a milder case than most severe of cases.<br><br>
Pertussis isn't a "little cough" that they have for "a few days".<br><br>
Do some research into how severe the cough is (think: hypoxia, broken ribs) and to HOW LONG the disease persists (think WEEKS).<br>
Also, look into the long term damage to the lungs the disease can cause.<br>
I don't want to sound like I'm using scare tactics or "touting the benefits" of the vaccine, hence why I'm saying to look those things up yourself and make your own decision.<br><br>
All that said, we decided to forgo DTaP until 2 yrs of age in our family. My children are not in daycare, and even though the baby (who is at most risk) is the only one that doesn't have the vax (the rest of the family is up to date) I am hoping that my breastmilk immunity, and the protection from the rest of us being vaxed is enough to protect baby until I feel comfortable giving this shot.<br><b>Honestly, I feel like pertussis is one of the biggest risks to my baby out of all the vaxes there are. BUT, for some reason I am also the most "afraid" of the DTaP shot of all the vaxes.</b> (don't ask me why....just a mommy gut feeling)<br>
So I "compromise" by having the rest of the family up to date, BFing, and limiting exposure until I feel comfortable with the jab.<br><br>
good luck with your decison!</div>
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I think that is what most moms considering this vaccine/disease feel. its definitely very controversial. it's a serious thing to catch, and the vaccine can cause serious reactions. very tough choice indeed - most people I know find this one to be the hardest to make a decision about, though I'm sure that is not the case for everyone.

 

[ericswifey27]

My 7 month old nephew almost died after having the DTaP vaccine. Apparently it is very well known in the medical community to cause such reactions, and from the research in medical journals and the doctors and professionals I have talked to in the past months, atleast those that will answer my questions, feel it is the Pertussis portion. I know I am not vaxing at all so maybe that makes you question my advice, but I was staying out of conversations with my sister about the DTaP and now I greatly regret not saying more. If I were to vaccinate selectively again I would mostly definitely avoid the DTaP (and the MMR)

 

[MsElle07]

We chose to forgo DTaP because it is the most highly reactive vaccine, in terms of serious, long term complications. When you hear about kids having irreversible brain damage/seizure disorders from vaccines, DTP/DTaP is often the one the parents say caused it.

 

[Super Glue Mommy]

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<div>Originally Posted by <strong>ericswifey27</strong> <a href="/community/forum/post/13192980"><img alt="View Post" class="inlineimg" src="/community/img/forum/go_quote.gif" style="border:0px solid;"></a></div>
<div style="font-style:italic;">My 7 month old nephew almost died after having the DTaP vaccine. Apparently it is very well known in the medical community to cause such reactions, and from the research in medical journals and the doctors and professionals I have talked to in the past months, atleast those that will answer my questions, feel it is the Pertussis portion. I know I am not vaxing at all so maybe that makes you question my advice, but I was staying out of conversations with my sister about the DTaP and now I greatly regret not saying more. If I were to vaccinate selectively again I would mostly definitely avoid the DTaP (and the MMR)</div>
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to be honest this vaccine was the "icing on the cake" for our decision. It seemed most "valuable" to us, but most risky at the same time. it was easy to cross off chicken pox and rotavirus. Polio followed. MMR I originally wanted to delay and split up (even after my son's reaction) but as I learned more about the diseases I saw it as an unnecessary risk. I had originally really wanted protections against Pertussis, but since I was going to delay it if we got it, and was breastfeeding, and found out it wouldn't be "fully" effective until 6 months (and protection BEFORE 6 months is most "necessary") etc the vaccine started to seem less and less valuable. accompanied by the risks associated with the vaccine, I found it terrifying in the end. Then of course, I started looking into herd immunity versus personal immunity from a statistical/probability (mathematician) view and that just confirmed it for us. What I like about breastfeeding is your milk is designed for your baby. I often wonder why some parents who want protection and vaccinate for that reason wouldn't breastfeed. Vaccines take the "one size fits all" approach, and every person is unique. breast milk is unique for your baby. its natures vaccine <img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="http://www.mothering.com/discussions/images/smilies/smile.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title="smile">

 

[~Ryleigh's Mommy~]

oh I know supergluemommy. My sister once directly compared my vaccine choices to "throwing your kid in front of a speeding car" <img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="/img/vbsmilies/smilies/eyesroll.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title="roll"> And yet she formula feeds and turned her baby forward facing in the carseat way too early.<br>
My kid is a LOT healthier/safer than her kid is because of breastmilk and being safe in the car (something a lot more likely to kill than VPD) but yet she thinks she's responsible and I'm "trying to get my kid killed" solely on the basis that she vaxes and I don't (mostly) <img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="http://www.mothering.com/discussions/images/smilies/angry.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title="angry"> (eek, sorry for the rant and run-on sentence)

 

[Super Glue Mommy]

(hugs) I think we all get that kind of attitude from one direction or another. I think you are being very responsible. it took a vaccine reaction for me to look past just what the CDC and pro-vax sources were saying. I remember thinking "why" a lot. (I always took my prenatals, I ate super healthy, I breastfed, etc) When I first started looking into it I didnt even know about the MMR connection all I knew what he got that vaccine and "changed". We never had any reactions to the DTaP THANKFULLY but this one scares me to think about now that i do know more.

 

[LilacMama]

Okay, renewing the thread. The 4 month visit is coming up and I'm freaking out about the DTaP again. The thought of her coughing until she turns blue and throwing up is physically painful for me.

 

[ammiga]

When we talked to our pedi about which vaxes he thought were most important and why, he ranked DTaP at the bottom of the list as the least important (among all of the birth-4 month vaxes). His reasons- diphtheria isn't an issue here, odds of dd contracting tetanus were next to nothing, and the pertussis portion of the vax is ineffective as pertussis changes so much.<br><br>
With dd being bf, we weren't worried and that vax was actually an easy decision for us.

 

[larkedyflarp]

This is the vaccine i struggle with because who wants their baby catching whooping cough!<br><br>
I was going to do this one but decided not to. i've heard of so many people "Fully" vaxed, what is it five rounds <img alt="" class="inlineimg" src="http://www.mothering.com/discussions/images/smilies/smile.gif" style="border:0px solid;" title="smile">, and they still get it.<br><br>
I figure what's the point of taking a chance with a bad reaction to the vaccine when it's not effective anyway.<br><br>
I also looked at the VAERS database with DTaP.<br><br>
My daughter had an anaphylactic reaction to her vaccines so I think long and hard about what to get for my son and so far he's 6 months and completely unvaxed and super healthy.<br><br>
In our country if a baby got it it seems they could be admitted to a hospital for oxygen worst case and end up fine. For older kids it's not a big deal anyway.

 

[julieann199930]

Efficacy is actually as low as 30ish range and up to 80ish efficacy with 4-5 doses. Immunity(if you get any at all) typically wanes after 5-7 years, hence why its now recommended adolescents get the vaccine at around age 11-12.<br><br>
The vaccine doesn't prevent transmission. What is hoped for by the vaccine is to reduce the disease in children/adolescents.adults so infants aren't exposed outright. The only thing the vaccine may do is prevent a more serious case in young infants.<br><br>
That is where herd immunity comes in with this vaccine..suppress the disease so young babies aren't exposed. However, most people will still get Pertussis at some point in their life, vaccinated or not.

 

[RhianaW14]

I didn't read all the responses, but we WILL be getting the Dtap for Brooklyn once she is born. My son who is now 5 had serious breathing issues when he was a baby, and I cannot do that again. We thought it was pneumonia, he had a chest x-ray to show that it wasn't, but he had low oxygen, and for a baby that is dangerous.<br><br>
I really wish this vax was available singly because I wouldn't do the diptheria or tetanus, but its not, so we will choose this combo vax.<br><br>
I also do home daycare, and if my child will eventually be exposed to children who get sick, I feel its my 'job' as a mom to provide some sort of protection.<br>
And even if later in life, and unvax'd person DID get pertussis, perhaps the duration or severity wouldn't have been as bad if they were vax'd. I am not saying that my dd won't get it eventually, but perhaps she wouldn't get it as bad.

 

[ericswifey27]

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<div>Originally Posted by <strong>LilacMama</strong> <a href="/community/forum/post/13755720"><img alt="View Post" class="inlineimg" src="/community/img/forum/go_quote.gif" style="border:0px solid;"></a></div>
<div style="font-style:italic;">Okay, renewing the thread. The 4 month visit is coming up and I'm freaking out about the DTaP again. The thought of her coughing until she turns blue and throwing up is physically painful for me.</div>
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Mama, look up the number of pertussis cases, the number of deaths from pertussis in 4 month olds. Then look up the number of deaths or injury from the DTaP in the VAERS system. It should reassure you that while Pertussis can be very scary and difficult to deal with, chances are you won't have to deal with it, AND it is treatable and will pass in time.<br>
I think the DTaP is way, way scarier than Pertussis, really and can have much more permanent, negative effects than what it attempts to prevent in the first place.