does anyone know why we don't vaccinate against chicken pox?

[cheapandchic]

is it purely the cost to the nhs?

I think it's because for most children chicken pox is a relatively mild, self limiting disease and doesn't have the morbidity and mortality rates that most other diseases do that we vaccinate against.

Also, it is not particularly effective? I probably may have made that up entirely

The reasons given are cost and increased risk of Shingles in the older population. I believe a Shingles vaccine has been developed, so cost will then be the only factor should the vaccine not be introduced.

There is also some concern that it could lessen the take-up of the MMR.

I had DD vaccinated privately, and will do for DD2 should she make it to 12 months without catching it. I hope it becomes part of the vaccine schedule here.

I think originally there may have been some concern that the immunity from the vaccination might not last for life, so if people then developed chicken pox in old age they could get very sick. I don't think that is a concern any more & I could just be making it up!! Cost & the fact that it is a mild illness I guess.

It's a very expensive vaccination.

somethingscary I think you are right, the immunity doesn't last long and I think in the US they have regular boosters which would be costly to adminster. Also people tend not to come back for boosters - I used to work in sexual health, hep b jab you have to have 3 injections over 6 months and the drop off was massive.

how much is it to get it privately in london?

Privately in southeast is 55x 2 for initial vaccine and booster 8 weeks or so later.
So £110.

The vaccination is given between age 1 and 2 and then a booster at 4 or 5 and that's it. (There is a small percentage of people who may need a booster as an adult) It is very effective. I only know one child here in the US who has had chicken pox and because he had been vaccinated it was a very mild case. My DSC's got chicken pox in the uk and were extremely ill with it: DSD has scars on her face and DSS was hospitalized for several days.

sofia- I travel to the usa a lot. can you get it even if you we have missed that window? my children are 2.5 and 8 months.?

does it have to be at those ages?

Sofia, the vaccine hasn't really been around long enough to say that it will provide protection for life. The same thing was said about the MMR but now the mumps component has been found to wane leading to outbreaks in young adults. The adult booster for CP is less effective so there is a risk that your immunity could wane in adulthood when you are more likely to suffer complications. Personally I wouldn't like that hanging over my head, particularly when I am pregnant. I'm glad that both my sons now have natural immunity to it after both having straightforward cases, as the vast majority of children do.

The first cohort of children to be vaccinated are coming up for 30 I believe, so there is only evidence that the vaccine (two doses) protects for about 25 years. This does not mean that the vaccine becomes ineffective after 25 years, just that there is no evidence to the contrary.

I have also read that if you had CP yourself as a child, then regular exposure to CP as an adult (through looking after kids with CP) helps to keep your immunity levels up and protects you against getting shingles, which is horrible.

If they started vaccinating against CP there would be a massive explosion in the number of cases of shingles in adults a few years later.

Not if they have a shingles vaccine, which is reportedly imminent.

The doctor currently treating my DD (who is in hospital following complications from chickenpox) said he is very much in favour of vaccinating kids against the disease. He is a specialist in childhood infectious diseases so presumably has done his homework.

He tells me complications aren't as rare as some would have us think. My DD was certainly very close to ending up in intensive care (I got her to A&E on time, thanks largely to some very helpful people here on Mumsnet).

I have been wondering about it a lot, and imagine cost must be one of the key reasons that chickenpox isn't routinely vaccinated against.

on in time

The vaccine DD1 had (can't remember the name, I think there are two main ones) doesn't require a booster apparently - it was given in two doses, 6-8 weeks apart (she had when she was 3.5, DD2 will have once she's over 12m). The GP told me that should be it with no need for boosters later in life.

Cost for each dose was about £170 I think (Edinburgh).

I vaccinated DC1 privately (cost about £120 for 2 jabs) and will vaccinate DC2. DC1 has eczema and could develop thousands of lesions with chickenpox; since he has already had skin infections requiring antibiotics for the eczema, I could not bear to think of what chickenpox might potentially be like for him. I had a very nasty dose of it myself as an adult. £120 is very little to avoid the risk of serious medical complications, scarring, quarantine, time off work and general misery. Blow me why we don't routinely vaccinate, the work time saved alone for parents no longer nursing quarantined children would probably pay for the programme.

Actually, I remember reading that a major reason is that, after all the health scares over MMR, there was concern that there would be difficulty promoting uptake of another vaccine. So, sort of a political reason.

Oh, and regarding boosters, in the UK, where there is a population containing quite a few people incubating chickenpox, there will be some exposure to the virus from time to time. This can have the effect of stimulating (boosting) the immune response in a vaccinated person, so boosters would not be so important. In the US, this exposure would be less likely, because of the established vaccination programme, so boosters have more value. AFAIK.

Hope your DD is ok now, gastrognome? That sounds awful

Yes, thank you Tethersend, DD is on the mend now (touch wood), though she'll probably be here in hospital for a good few more days yet.

Aw... wish her well.

Honestly, Chicken Pox is a medieval illness.

herecomesthsun what here comes the sun said.

Generally you get immunity after catching it as a child then recieve a large boost to that immunity when your own children it and you are re-exposed, this gives you some protection from shingles in later life.

In the States there is currently a surge in shingles cases in the elderly as this cycle has been broken, but older people are not vaccinated.

cheapandchic, you can still get it at different ages/intervals. That's just what is required here (i.e. before entry to nursery and then before entry to kindergarten).

There has NOT been an surge of shingles in the elderly in the USA.

The vaccination is approximately 90% effective. And in those who still contract chicken pox, it is generally much milder. As I said before, some patients need boosters, but the vast majority appear from studies to have immunity from the two childhood jabs. If it turns out a 3rd adulthood jab will need to be given later in life, then so be it. Much less costly than the risks that go with chickenpox.
And I do believe there is now a vaccination available for shingles, although it's possible it's still only in clinical trials.

Seems like the shingles vaccine is already available privately in the UK: here.