To those who delayed/partially vaccinated...

[koru]

Hi all,
Still trying to get my head round all this - just when I decided what to do this bloomin whooping cough outbreak cranks up a notch in my area Hoping to get it with as few 'extra' vaccinations as possible. What have others done about this one?
My main objection to HepB is that most kids are at extremely low risk of this disease (need transfer of bodily fluids like blood) to contract and the vaccine needs heaps more doses to 'take hold' in young babies than adults so increasing their exposure to all the additives therein. So if your kid is in daycare playing rough & tumble (not just sharing drink bottles) with children who may have been exposed to HepB in thier families (ie VERY close contact and exchange of fluids not just an auntie who kissed them) then I can see a need. As a healthcare worker I've had to be vaccinated for HepB and rightly so - but a baby at birth....?
For me the 'risks vs benefits' equation doesn't work out. But that's just my view - everyone needs to decide for themselves

[lestyrox]

Hi all, i'm just after some info from those of you who have partially vaccinated or delayed some vaccinations...

DS2 is due for his 12month needles but i am 99% sure i wont be giving him the MMR.
I do however want him to have the Hib, Hep B and Meningococcal C.

Just wondering, can these vaccinations be given without the MMR, what i mean is are they seperate? Also when i take him to get his needles do i just tell them i don't want him to get the MMR and do i have to sign a form?

Any advice would be great thanks!

[Cherie]

Just wondering, can these vaccinations be given without the MMR, what i mean is are they seperate? Also when i take him to get his needles do i just tell them i don't want him to get the MMR and do i have to sign a form?

Yes, they're separate, so you can delay MMR while still getting HiB, Hep B and Meningococcal. We didn't get DS's MMR until he was over 2 years old, but his other 12 month vaccinations were on time. We didn't have to sign any forms, but it did affect our Centrelink immunisation allowance, which they generally calculate, I think, at 18 months old. Just something to be aware of.

[tenar]

Hi all,
Still trying to get my head round all this - just when I decided what to do this bloomin whooping cough outbreak cranks up a notch in my area Hoping to get it with as few 'extra' vaccinations as possible. What have others done about this one?
My main objection to HepB is that most kids are at extremely low risk of this disease (need transfer of bodily fluids like blood) to contract and the vaccine needs heaps more doses to 'take hold' in young babies than adults so increasing their exposure to all the additives therein. So if your kid is in daycare playing rough & tumble (not just sharing drink bottles) with children who may have been exposed to HepB in thier families (ie VERY close contact and exchange of fluids not just an auntie who kissed them) then I can see a need. As a healthcare worker I've had to be vaccinated for HepB and rightly so - but a baby at birth....?
For me the 'risks vs benefits' equation doesn't work out. But that's just my view - everyone needs to decide for themselves

I have read reports (but not read the original research papers, mind you) that say that quite a lot of Hep B infections cannot be traced to a blood or bodily fluid contact. I think it was 30%, don't remember exactly. It was a surprisingly high number of people that don't know how they got the disease.

The reason to vaccinate babies is because if babies get Hep B, they mostly cannot clear the infection ever, and end up as chronic sufferers of the disease and its consequences. Half of those chronic sufferers will die of complications of the disease (again I have forgotten the details - I think it was cirrhosis and something else I don't remember).

If adults get the disease, most of them actually end up clearing it out and don't get it chronically. But apparently it is much more serious for babies and young children. That, plus the fact that they don't know how quite a lot of cases were transmitted, is why it is recommended for babies at birth. As I understand it anyway.

There is more information about this disease, with references, in the wikipedia article about Hepatitis B.