Anybody else offered BCG/tuberculosis vaccine for newborn?

[WinterMymble]

Has anybody else been offered the BCG/tuberculosis vaccine for their newborn right after birth? (same time as vit k). It is not standard on nhs... Nhs recommend it depending on eg if you ever lived in a country on a giant list as having higher tb rates thanbthe uk. I have never had tb and never met anybody who has ever had tb, so it was a surprise they recommended the vaccine.

Some controversies out there about whether sensible to do it straight away or to wait until baby immune system has had a chance to develop (since it is a live vaccine si designed to provoke an immune response, which obviously the baby will not be able to do in the usual way). It is quite a significant vaccine and can cause some side effects so i want to make sure the timing is right. I am not thrilled about it happening first thing to be honest.

[monopod]

Our DS had the vaccination just after birth (we had it due to both DH and I having grown up abroad in a country we still regularly travel to) and he experienced no ill effects. For what it's worth, where we grew up, the entire population receives the vaccination as standard (at birth and a booster at around 12 years of age), and I'm not aware of any family or friends who experienced any significant ill effects from the vaccine.

I'm not sure about your background but I would think that you would want to take into account how long it had been since you lived in the country in question, and to what extent you or your baby are likely to come into contact with the disease - if you don't have family in the country and are not visiting the country it sounds like your risk would be minimal?

[AAK1797]

In some London hospitals they offer it immediately after birth (well, the next day I think from memory) as standard, or at least they did 2 years ago. I accepted it as I figured it was one less to have later when they are more aware of what's going on....

[SuperSesame]

Its standard where I am in Ireland too. DS had it at 1 day old. No ill effects except for a nasty raised bump on his arm. Still has the red mark now at 19 months. I was in two minds about getting it for that reason. Its like branding a baby with a permanent scar.
But.....there have been a few TB scares in schools around here lately, which was the deciding factor for me.

[WinterMymble]

That is helpful weryone... Thanks. monopod it is very reassuring to actually think it is a standard vaccine across entire populations... Is that South Africa by any chance? That is where i lived for a while and is apparently one of the countires on the list, though they said that there a pockets of tb in the uk now too.

[shazra]

Both my babies where offered it because my ethnic origin was Pakistani. They offer it to groups of people from certain ethnicities.

[Cheekychops84]

Hi I don't know if this helps but we weren't offered it but I asked for it as my husband is from Uganda (east Africa) and a lot of his friends and family go over there and would have been in close contact with the baby etc. They offered it straight away to my eldest who was 2 and my baby who was like 2months . No side affects at all just a bit of a sore arm :( I will be asking for this baby of she can have one when she is here too. On the plus side they don't have to have it when they are 13 and they know what to expect :)

[blacktreaclecat]

Yes I was offered it for DS now 2 weeks old. I was born in Kenya so that is why. I had the TB jab at birth and again as a teenager.
I decided against as I felt he is no more at risk than any other newborn. I have only visited Kenya once since I left age 1, for a holiday a few years ago.

[RillaBlythe]

I didn't have dd jabbed until she was a bit older - around 12 m for dd1 & 8m for dd2, but we had it done because of South African connections.

[ViniVidiVisa]

My ds was 6 weeks, standard for my London borough. tbh it was a non-event! As I teach, as do all members of nearby extended family (sad eh...) I was pleased he has it as we have such a high chance of one of us being in contact with a child or family member with tb (I've been through 3 alerts just in my own inner london school)

[suiledonn1]

It's routine here in Ireland, due to history of TB.

DD1 had the vaccine in the hospital when she was 2 days old and dd2 when she was 1 week old - both had a sore looking arm for a little while but other than that no problems.

[monopod]

WinterMymble - no not SA but somewhere in Southeast Asia :)

[TodaysAGoodDay]

My DS was immunised at 3 weeks as we were going over to South Africa. DS was fine, no bump, no redness, just lots of screaming at the time. Cruel mummy .

[hackneyzoo]

DD1 was born on HK and had the jab as a newborn, DS and DD2 born in East London, where it was a higher risk TB area and also had the jabs as new borns. DD2 had a horid, liquid filled bump from it and now has a scar there, although it's faded a bit.

[Herrena]

My DS was jabbed while I was still on the delivery bed!! He was 2 hours old. Apparently it's because we live in an area (within UK) with a high TB risk.

It swelled up to about 1cm clear of his skin and then popped one day, expelling green goo. He seemed unhappy at the actual moment of popping but it didn't seem to bother him before or after that.

I'd get it done TBH - it's one less thing to worry about and TB is a nasty disease.

[RichManPoorManBeggarmanThief]

I live in HK and here it is standard. There are some doubts over the efficacy of the vaccine, and it is currently thought that immune response is much better if given in infancy. Therefore if you live in a higher risk area, or are likely to travel to one regularly, it probably makes sense.

Vanity point: Tell them to give it in the butt rather than the arm, as it can scar quite obviously.

[monopod]

Hmmm... RichManPoorManBeggarmanThief - I actually think it would be preferable to have an obvious scar on the upper arm than on the bum! Especially as you can develop a keloid scar at the vaccination site which I imagine could be awkward when sitting (?)

I suppose you could cover up a scar on the bottom more easily than on the arm, but given the choice I'd still opt for the arm. I have two obvious scars on my upper left arm from the jabs (one from birth and the other from the booster jab at 12) and they don't bother me at all, whereas two on the bum absolutely would

[RichManPoorManBeggarmanThief]

When I say bum, it's more on the side/hip than on where you'd sit.

I guess I'm thinking DS more likely to want to wear a wife beater than be a butt model, although neither really appeals tbh