to be bl**dy furious that my DD has measles because other parents won't vaccinate?

[elportodelgato]

poor DD is only 11 mo and has horrid measles all over her, full of cold, streaming eyes, diarrhea, very unhappy and sleepy and limp. I am so so for her, but more I am absolutely bloody with idiot parents who won't have the MMR!

The doctor actually told me this morning that the reason it is so prevalent in our area is because of stupid people refusing to vaccinate their children and compromising the immunity of the whole group. So now my LO, who is only 2 months off having the vaccination herself, is really really sick because of other people's stupidity. It's making my blood boil! Do people not realise how dangerous it can be in little babies? And does anyone still seriously believe the so called "research" which claimed a link between MMR and autism? It has been so completely discredited in recent years you would think people would have got over it by now and started vaccinating again

Arrgh!!

I'm amazed justa. Why don't they do singles then?
[obviously pag that includes children whose siblings have had a bad reaction in those who shouldn't have jabs]

Ruty - I am not relying on others vaccinating to protect my child. In fact, I wish people wouldn't because the chances of DCs getting the natural diseases when they're supposed to, ie as kids, is lower and therefore they are more likely to suffer if they catch them as adults. Also, more protection is passed on to the baby when the mum has had the disease naturally and not via a vaccine so i am thinking of my grandkids too.

AAE - what about polio?

[this is an argument i have with myself btw!]

what about it?

polio killed my aunt. Pretty certain vaccination has a lot to do with wiping it out in this country, though know the live vaccine was a stupid idea [it is not live anymore]

I have nothing against polio vaccine.

It's the relatively harmless childhood diseases that are being vaccinated against (rubella - why?!?) AND as a 3-in-1 package that I don't like.

I thought the rubella was to eradicate it as it was so harmful in pregnancy for unborn children....

teenage girls should have a rubella booster.

Pagwatch, saintly, peachy and beach:
I am sorry for assuming most non vaccinators were stupid.
You have shown me very eloguently that that isn't the case. Thanks.

I am truly sorry to learn about the hard times you have had and hope you have some luck with the medical profession in general in future.

oh pagwatch- I had no idea your ds had chickenpox in the months before MMR. Did you know that a lot of parents who had MMR problems have said the same? The ARU has been slowly collecting data on it for years and I think continue to do so. Last time I spoke to them (which was a few years ago) they were unsure whether there was going to be anything significant or not. Might be worth chatting to them though.

TBH Fleeting the medical profession on the whole has been very supportive. DS3 ended up in hospital after seizures (incidentally I can't get him a single tetanus, can only get one with pertussis and pertussis is supposedly contraindicated in children with seizures) and we saw a whole bunch of consultants, doctors & nurses. Not one of them criticised our decision (actually one did but she was fresh out of medical school and really didn't know anything about vaccinations or autism) - some even went so far as to say they would have considered doing the same.

My GP's and HV have also been supportive.

My favourite GP left the profession, during our last consultation he started saying how daft he thought it was that multiple vaccinations were given and that you couldn't get e.g. single paediatric tetanus.

I have found the official line gets dropped pretty quickly by most doctors dealing with an individual case.

ineedmorechocolate - you can't "eradicate" a disease in the age of frequent air travel, when half of the world doesn't vaccinate against it. Even if the uptake was 100% (it isn't) and MMR bestowed 100% immunity (it doesn't).

It is much easier, cheaper, more efficient, and immunologically more sensible to let everyone have rubella in childhood and vaccinate the few girls who haven't had it before puberty.

Thank you Fleeting. Very nice of you to say that.

hey Saintly. I know the chicken pox has been thought to factor in just from talking to other similar parents but didn't know the ARU were looking at it.I will phone if I get an hour to wait on the phone line

It does make me concerned about people looking at combining chicken pox vaccine into the schedule though...

saintly - I'm pretty sure you can get tetanus vaccine all on its own here in France. Would you like me to post you some?

Problem is also that now you can't have just the polio vaccine, you have to have the five in one.

Cote - If you'd have rather risked not catching it in childhood and having it when pregnant instead, then that's fine. It's all about choice. Isn't the point of researching and producing vaccines for the intent of 'eradicating' diseases? I'm not a moron by the way, I am aware that it's not 100% sure in this age of air travel.......

Personally, I'd rather have had the vaccination when I was a teenager to not run the risk of harming any future unborn children, should I catch it when I was pregnant.

(HIJACK ALERT) Oh, and I haven't seen you on the June thread for a while - How's it going? Not long to go now!

you can have three in one if you push hard enough AAE - polio, dip, tetanus

Don't think most surgeries order in anything other than 5 in 1,not sure how "available" anything other than the usual brands etc are.

Not seen DT and Polio for a long time.I guess if you speak to the Practice Manager,if its still made they can order it.

If you need tetanus ( ie after a cut) you are given the DPT. So it is available to health authorities - just depends on whether they will let surgeries have it or use it.