Is MMR booster necessary?

[Cha]

My older dd had the sep vacs in 2003-4 and my younger ds had the MMR in 2005. I decided that the risks (if any) of the MMR vaccine were less than him getting measles etc and we also could no longer afford the £200+ for the sep vacs.

ANYWAY - the time has come for the booster. I have tried to research it on the internet but with little luck and I know there is a wealth of info in the brains of mumsnetters so ... what is the verdict? My main problem is that both are now 'sentient' at 2 and a half and 4 and will not like the injection, especially if they are the one who has to go second, iyswim.
Do they have to have it, is it just 'belts and braces' or is it really necessary?

[chapsmum]

It is very important especially for girls to have the booster. (It is v important for girls to have immunity to ruebella for when they are older)

The reason for this is that one dose does not always guarentee immunity, and measles is more common during school time. ( for that matter twodoses sill not guarantee immunity shichis why its important to complete the course)

You could ask for the girls to have emla or ametop gel (local anasthetic cream) applied though this takes 20 mins to work and is sometimes more bother than its worth.

[mszebra]

I thought that the MMR conferred about 90% immunity the first time child got it (around 12-18m).
That means that 10% of children will not have full immunity.
Of those 10%, 90% will get immunity after the 2nd jab.
So, at the moment, your children have a 90% chance of immunity to all 3 diseases. If they get the booster, they will have then a 99% chance of full immunity.
Up to you whether you feel an extra 9% chance of protection is worth the drawbacks.

[kid]

I was also worried about how my children would react to the booster. DD was hyserical, she screamed and had to be held down by 3 people. DS wasn't bothered in the slightest. He actually watched the needle go in, and then watched them as they did the second needle in his other arm
Meanwhile, I was hiding behing DD's back so I didn't have to watch!

They can have a bloodtest to confirm if they are already immune but I believe you would have to pay for this yourself (about £80)

[Cha]

Thanks all - just the kind of stuff I have spent ages trying to find on the internet, 10 mins of waiting on Mumsnet!

[LIZS]

When ds last had injections I was told to get him to cough as it went it - seemed to distract him.

[Cha]

Good tip Liz, cheers x

[jenkel]

Both my dds have had the seperate jab, the clinic that done our jabs recommended have a blood test to see if they neeeded the booster as one of the previous responses said that the majority of children does have immunity, at least to one of the 3. So, you can either take the risk that they are immmune, get a blood test done and only inject again if necessary or go for the mmr route or all the sep injections again. The clinic that done the seperate injections for us do blood test, not sure how easy it will be to get blood from a 4 year old, but that is the way I want to go, dont want to overload their system with things they dont need.

[Hulababy]

jenkel - where did you go (who to contact) to get your blood test done?

DD had the MMR at 13 months and was really pretty poorly following it, and I would rather not risk her going through that again.

I did speak to my GP about this (a different surgery to where MMR was done as moved). There appears to be nothing in DD's medical records about her reaction - strange as I went in several times to see the GP, nurse and HV. The GP said that the blood test will not tell them the information they need to know, so won't tell us if she needs the booster or not. Have no idea why this is??? Confused. I am going back again, with DH for extra support, but happy to pay for tests myself if I can.

If you have any contacts, thanks

[chapsmum]

Hb, there really is no reason that I can think of, all you have to do is ask for her blood titre levels to be checked. I really cant see any reason why they cant do this.
I know it is possible that the titre level will deplete over time and so she may have to have another blood test and possibly a booster in later life, but not really sure what your gp is on about....

[Hulababy]

Thanks - glad I am not only one who doesn't see why a blood test can't be done.

Think I am going to have to go back and really fight our corner this time.

[Fauve]

I'd be interested to hear how you get on, Hulababy - I've been trying to find info on these blood tests, but it seems hard to come by. Maybe they're deemed unreliable? Otherwise, it should be possible to establish whether a child has immunity, or not, surely?

[Hulababy]

I'll keep you posted fauve. I have to make that appointment soon, as her booster is due in next couple of months.

[Fauve]

Thanks

[jenkel]

The Clinic I used was the Breakspear Medical Group in Hemel Hempstead, I know that you could get the blood test done there.

If thats too far I would imagine that any place that offers the single injections would also offer the blood test.

I think the Bath Clinic in Bath also does the single jabs so they may also offer the blood tests.

[Hulababy]

Yes, too far as we are in Sheffield. Unfortunately we are in the same city where that doctor's clinic was close down for giving out the dodgy single vax.

I will have to do some proper research I guess.

[jenkel]

thats a shame, good luck in finding somewhere

[chapsmum]

Hulababy, ithink possibly you may have to pay for the bloods to be done.
The reasoning would be, and I'm not saying this is right, but the blood test are not considered to be a neccesary party of you baby immunisation schedual as far as their concerned.

[Hulababy]

More than happy to pay for them.