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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

to give ds the chickenpox vaccine?

64 replies

backtowork2015 · 07/08/2016 21:03

My dd had chickenpox at 9m (4 yrs ago) and was really unwell but came off lightly compared to recent headline stories. Ds is 2.6 and I'm considering paying for the vaccine. I do worry we are over vaccinating kids these days but he had the rota virus vaccine along with the usual jabs as a baby and i probably should have questioned that if I was worried about multiple vaccine risks. I've had friends dc with horrible cases of chickenpox over recent years, hospitalised and requiring iv antibiotics. With hindsight I probably would have vaccinated my dd.
I have read reasons not to vaccinate would be possible less immunity (if course not completed) and then more severe disease later on and new exposure to virus increases immunity of others to shingles.
Is there any really sound reason I shouldn't just vaccinate him?

OP posts:

FuzzyOwl · 07/08/2016 21:44

I support the chickenpox vaccination (in this country it is two injections a month apart after the age of 1; often abroad there is a preschool and teenage booster). Our NHS has limited funds and paying for the medical care for those who suffer from shingles in adulthood is expensive, whereas it rarely costs them anything to treat a child with chickenpox. As the chickenpox vaccination very slightly increases your risk of having shingles as an adult, the NHS would rather not provide it as part of the standard childhood vaccinations in order to save money.

EllsTeeth · 07/08/2016 21:45

Thanks HeCantBe

And exactly sallysparrow. We just don't know the duration yet as the vaccine is relatively new. It is possible to blood test for immunity and child could have a booster if necessary when older. We will know more about longevity by then.

SquinkiesRule · 07/08/2016 21:46

My youngest was vaccinated for CP it was part of her regular vax schedule when we lived in US, she has gone on to have CP twice in two years both times very mild. First time I took her in to the Doctors due ti under the weather and I though some allergic reaction seeing she had been vaccinated. He diagnosed CP same again a year later.
Turns out when chatting to a friend over there, her son had the same, he got CP three years in a row after getting the vaccine.
Makes me wonder how bad she would have got it without the vaccine, if she managed to get it with the vax.

SomedayBaby · 07/08/2016 21:46

CP is a strange one because the level of illness is unrelated to the number of spots IME.

DS1 (age 6) had CP first. He had a mild temperature for 2 days, then was fine in himself from day 3 when the spots started coming out. He was absolutely plastered in them from head to toe...like a pp said, they were on his eyelids, in his mouth, his privates were covered (he was horrified!), there was barely a centimetre of clear skin on him.

Ds1 (8) got it just as ds2 was recovered. He was ill for nearly a week with flu-symptoms and raging temperature, really unwell bless him but not a spot in sight. The spots appeared on day 7..barely a handful. Had I not been pretty sure it was CP because ds1 had just had it, I think the spots might have gone unnoticed on ds1...he was much more ill though.

EllsTeeth · 07/08/2016 21:48

Sounds horrible SomedayBaby.

Lemonwords · 07/08/2016 21:48

Sally - I'd rather my child was protected now too but sadly he seems to never catch it when there is an outbreak at nursery realise I am missing your point

NeedsAsockamnesty · 07/08/2016 21:49

I have vaccinated all of mine and myself

Lindy2 · 07/08/2016 21:53

I had my 4 year old vaccinated after a friend's child nearly died from CP. They recovered but needed plastic surgery on their face.
It was too close for comfort for us and I'm glad we decided to vaccinate. It was 2 jabs done at our local gp surgery. They cost £50 each.

Original poster

backtowork2015 · 07/08/2016 21:53

I just remember gasping in horror when I went to change dds soiled nappy, her privates were covered in open sores which were filled with faeces I didn't know where to start. She was only 9m and I comfort myself she doesn't remember how much pain she was in. My ds is 2.6, ig would be horrible for him.
I contemplated the men b vaccine but decided the risk of contracting it was so low even though the potential consequences are so serious (am still open minded and prepared to be persuaded, whilst I'm in the private clinic after all...) But he will get CP, it's just the severity is unknown

OP posts:

SomedayBaby · 07/08/2016 21:54

I was desperate to stop ds2 scratching because he had so many spots I imagined him having scars all over. He did try but it was the absent-minded scratch that was hard to control.

The best thing that worked was allowing him to play on the Playstation or Nintendo DS...it seemed the perfect mix of keeping his interest/concentration and keeping his hand constantly busy. They normally have strict screen allowances so Ds2 felt like he'd hit the jackpot and had the best ten days ever

Longdistance · 07/08/2016 21:54

Dd2 had the Vacerella vaccine in Oz when we lived there. Dd1 hasn't had it.

Go for it. It can have many complications, and shouldn't be taken lightly.

Original poster

backtowork2015 · 07/08/2016 21:56

Any immediate side effects from the vaccine?

OP posts:

Bodicea · 07/08/2016 21:58

I had my son vaccinated. He has severe eczema and that does not go well with chickenpox. People die from chicken pox. I don't understand why anyone wouldn't get the vaccine if they can afford it.
I don't agree with using sick children to boost adults immunity in order to prevent shingles!!! . It's a ridiculous argument. If
They don't want shingles then they can get a booster!!

hazeyjane · 07/08/2016 22:03

No side effects here. Ds did get chickenpox a year after having the vaccine but no fever, about 10 spots, no complications (he has lung problems which is why he was vaccinated). Some studies have shown a relationship between asthma, steroids and contracting chicken pox after the vaccine.

BeanCalledPickle · 07/08/2016 22:07

At a population level the risk of neurological damage from varicella is the same as men B. However one is common and the other rare so the perception of risk is distorted. To me it's a no brainer. To save them the potential horror or even just a mild illness seems worth it. I think we are generally wedded to the NHS and its guidance and if the NHS says we should then we do but if it doesn't then we think it's ok. It's not. Chicken pox can kill and can cause serious complications.

Bodicea · 07/08/2016 22:07

No side effects for my son.
I do think there is a slight misunderstanding of how the vaccine works by some people. I understand it as it is the equivalent of catching chicken pox. You are not delaying getting it as others have insinuated. I don't pretend to be an expert and forget the nitty gritty of the details but I remember being satisfied when I researched it at the time that my son would have some form of protection into adulthood as though he had had it and further exposures would boost his immunity but he. could always get a booster also in the future.

HeCantBeSerious · 07/08/2016 22:09

Chicken pox can kill and can cause serious complications.

So can cars, stairs and bee stings.

Bodicea · 07/08/2016 22:09

Just wish I could vaccinate my little girl before she turns one!!!

HeCantBeSerious · 07/08/2016 22:09

I do think there is a slight misunderstanding of how the vaccine works by some people. I understand it as it is the equivalent of catching chicken pox. You are not delaying getting it as others have insinuated

No, it's not the same.

SleepFreeZone · 07/08/2016 22:10

I did a lot of reading on it a couple of years ago and read that it can leave you more susceptible to Shingles as an adult. I'm not sure if anyone wants to correct that information but it really put be off.

HeCantBeSerious · 07/08/2016 22:10

You body's reaction to a live but altered virus is never the same as it would be to the actual virus. So the immunity effects aren't the same.

FuzzyOwl · 07/08/2016 22:11

Chicken pox can kill and can cause serious complications.

So can cars, stairs and bee stings.

And that is why we wear seat belts, put up stair gates/rails and people who are around lots of bees wear protective clothing. It is just common sense to do what you can to prevent a premature death or serious injury.

FuzzyOwl · 07/08/2016 22:13

This is correct but the increased risk is very small. And, if you want to, you can choose to get a shingles vaccination as an adult.

Ericaequites · 07/08/2016 22:16

My siblings had chicken pox as adults, and were very ill indeed. I would strong recommend the vaccine for everyone.

NeedsAsockamnesty · 07/08/2016 22:18

No side effects at all from any of my household but you do have to avoid vulnerable people for a time afterwards as its a live vaccine

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