In thinking you should vaccinate against Chicken Pox if you can afford it?

[shutyourlittleface]

I just don't see the downside.

I currently have two mum mates moaning about their nurseries having confirmed chicken pox cases. They could just have their kids vaccinated to alleviate the worry surely?

Much better to vaccinate- chicken pox can kill and cause permanent disabilities. It enrages me that it spreads round nurseries in this country still. It’s particularly dangerous for pregnant women who may have older children at a nursery. It’s not harmless by any stretch of the imagination. It’s a failing of the NHS that we are not vaccinating and no evidence that 2 step vaccine wears off at all.

^THIS!!

Every doctor that knows anything about chicken pox I've spoken to says the vaccination WILL become part of our programme soon and wishes it were already. I studied medical microbiology and have children...1 of whom got sepsis from chicken pox aged 10months. I had my 2 youngest children vaccinated.

OP you are NOT being unreasonable!

You don’t seem very smart shutupyourlittleface - you keep getting lost on very easy to read posts. Do you have a literacy issue?

@Helspopje again not true. The US has much lower rates of chicken Pox death than we do. Because they vaccinate. And research in US shows the vast majority of deaths there are unvaccinated people. Like here. Pretty much every other developed country vaccinates. And there is no evidence at all for the nonsense people are serving up here. The reason the NHS gives is that circulation of chicken pox helps protect elderly against shingles. But there is a vaccine for shingles and chicken pox kills about 30 or so a year in the UK. And also evidence from other countries shows that it’s not necessarily making any difference to shingles.

We had DS booked in for the vaccine, then there was an outbreak at nursery... Boots advised us to push the appointment back by a week as there was no point having the vaccine if he had already been exposed... We thought we had gotten away with it but he started getting the spots the day before he was going to be vaccinated I would have rather paid the money and not have had him be poorly to be honest. He wasn't too bad but he had them in his mouth and was very uncomfortable and he has some scarring though not on his face thankfully.

When we have another DC, they'll be getting booked in for the vaccination as soon as they turn 1! I don't get why anyone wouldn't if they can afford it

I was pretty ill as a child with chickenpox and off shock for about a month. And I still have noticeable scars to this day on my face. I’ve had my kids vaccinated for it.

Vaccine provides some cover even post exposure so poor advice from Boots.

@Passthecherrycoke I am surprised that you would rather spend £150 on days out than preventing your child getting at the very least a painful and debilitating illness and at worse an illness that could kill or permanently disable them or others they give it to.

But if that’s really your priorities and you don’t see anything wrong with that, I think there’s not much anyone could say to reason with you.

You do realise mumps can cause impotence in men and rubella can cause miscarriage and birth defects when contracted by pregnant women?

I'm aware that mumps could cause fertility issues in men but it probably wouldn't if caught by a child and treated effectively. I had it when I was little, it was very mild. As for rubella, I'd rather see women of childbearing age be given the vaccine, instead of it being given to small children, half of whom will receive no benefit from it.

I'm so confused as to why we are constantly told our children must be vaccinated against flu but the chicken pox isn't offered. I might be wrong but in both cases, arguments I seem to hear with regards to bring pro flu vaccine and anti CP vaccine are to do with how it affects the elderly. Seems ridiculous to me.

Vaccine provides some cover even post exposure so poor advice from Boots.

Yes I thought this too. Bad on boots there

*@Passthecherrycoke I am surprised that you would rather spend £150 on days out than preventing your child getting at the very least a painful and debilitating illness and at worse an illness that could kill or permanently disable them or others they give it to.

But if that’s really your priorities and you don’t see anything wrong with that, I think there’s not much anyone could say to reason with you.*

Totally agree with this.

I moved to UK from an Asian country and chicken pox/varicella vaccine was offered for DD after age 1 before we left. It's routinely offered there. Glad we did as there were so many cases of chicken pox in DDs nursery.

I was vaccinated as a young adult and had a booster some years ago.

Strongly believe NHS should offer it as part of the vaccination program.

Do you get any other privately available vaccines OP? Or if it just CP you’ve been reading too many FB scare stories about?

I agree.

I remember having chicken pox, it was unpleasant and I still have a scar. £150 per child didn’t seem very much compared to avoiding that for them and also me not having a terrible week of constant oat baths and lotions and crying children.

I'm so confused as to why we are constantly told our children must be vaccinated against flu but the chicken pox isn't offered. I might be wrong but in both cases, arguments I seem to hear with regards to bring pro flu vaccine and anti CP vaccine are to do with how it affects the elderly. Seems ridiculous to me.

It's so confusing.

I'm thinking it's to do with the uptake of the MMR

A friend's little boy nearly died from chicken pox. He had to be rushed in an ambulance to a major hospital where thankfully they saved his life. He then needed plastic surgery on his face.
My eldest has already had chicken pox and it had been mild. I still got my youngest vaccinated after knowing what has happened to my friend's son.

@Passthecherrycoke I got the men b vaccine for my dcs privately. Dunno about “pretending it was common” but lots of other people did too that I know.

No way would I subject my dcs to a potentially fatal disease to save a few quid. No pretense there I’m afraid. I cannot understand your behaviour at all but I do wish that vaccines were compulsory for nursery and state school. Then at least the damage people like you could do would be minimized.

It's been on the vaccination schedule here since my eldest was about 4 or 5, so 15-ish years. I don't recall the last time I saw someone with chicken pocks. When I had it, it was awful. In my ears, my nose, my lady bits. Bad. I still have pock scars. :(

@Helspopje this isn't true! I'm one of the professionals you mentioned and I've had my kids vaccinated plus I've paid for their cousins to get chickenpox vaccine too. And I know several colleagues who have also done so (I'd say in paediatric doctors it's around 50 per cent that get their kids vaccinated, those that don't is more likely due to disorganisation rather than thinking it's a bad idea).

I've seen 1 child die of chickenpox, 2 get sepsis and nearly die and 2 others lose limbs and need huge skin grafts. Yes most kids are OK when they catch it but.... Why take the risk if you can afford the jabs?? Seriously I don't understand people sometimes.

I know someone high up in JCVI (vaccine planning government group) who says they're planning to bring it into the UK schedule within next couple of years.

If you chose not to vaccinate and your child was one of the unlucky ones who suffered severe long term consequences or died - could you live with yourself, knowing how easily you could have prevented it?

I know I couldn't. DD was vaccinated as soon as she was old enough.

Do you get any other privately available vaccines OP? Or if it just CP you’ve been reading too many FB scare stories about?

I'll be getting him the HPV vaccine if it's not offered on the nhs to boys by the time he should have it.

Just noticed the private GP I go to offered shingles vaccines to ages 1 month to 15 years

zsazsajuju Did you? When did you get men B? 10 years ago? 15 years ago?

Or when it was introduced for babies on the NHS?

There are many private vaccinations available, have a quick google. You could spend thousands. Go without a holiday, you know how important they are!

You can get him if now shutupyourface- why wait! Get in there.

Apparently it's not yet in the schedule as they've been busy bringing in rotavirus /hep b /pcv multivalent /shingles jabs. But hopefully soon!

We vaccinated. I read that the incidence of shingles is much lower if you vaccinate against CP instead of catching it and I was keen to avoid that for my DC.