Chickenpox Vaccine

[yummyummy]

I have heard aout a vaccine lo's can have to prevent it, is it available in the UK? Had anyone's dd's ds's had it? tia

My friends daughter did and still caught CPox it is not foolproof IIRC

I got it for both of my dds when going home to the US-they have often been exposed but never had it. It works most of the time, and prevents shingles later in life. My dad nearly lost his eye last year from shingles so was keen to help organise the treatment-but it is available here privately I'm told.

Yes,

it cost £90 in Manchester I'm told. I can find out the details if you want to know.

hi lyra yes please if you could that would be great. is it a standard vaccine in the usa then?

yes people there are astonished that I "had" to go there to get it, and the flu vaccine is given to kids too. Reinforced their image of Britain as a sub-Third World sort of place!

never been to the us (hopefully planning to next yr when dd a it older) i take the healthcares a lot different

Yep, I've had it.

However, I should warn you, mine didn't take and when I was tested for immunity (while I was pregnant and exposed to chickenpox) I didn't have any I must be fairly rare though as I think it's about 98% effective?!

(that was about a year after I'd had the vaccination, btw)

i am in two minds whether to just let her get it or have the vaccine smiley

My two both had it in the usa as it is required for entry to school in california. It was not available in the uk at the time (a few years ago). My understanding is that it is relatively effective in preventing cp, but even when it doesn't, the cp that does result is a much milder version. It is also supposed to help prevent or make much milder adult shingles.

I would think that the decision on whether or not to vaccinate should be based on how cp manifests itself in your family.

my dd's had the jab, as lo's in malaysia have to have it after one year old

dd and ds both have had it from when we lived in the USA, been exposed lots and neither of them have been infected - good for asthmatics as they can get Pnemonia if they get chickenpox dd was vacinated at 1, she was one of the first to have it, as it was a new vaccine

When I was pg, I got tested for immunity to Cp, as Im a teacher who hasn't had it yet. But I was immune so I didnt have to have it.

Astounded by being able to, no more than that, it being a requirement to have the jab in other countries.

USA checks pg mums for Group B Strep too, as a matter of course.

ok but before we all get on a "UK healthcare is years behing the US" trip lets just keep in mind that if you show up at the hospital with no money and no health insurance in the US they can actually refuse to treat you. Postnatal visits to your home are unheard of (so if mum wants her 6 day old baby to see the doctor she has to go there). Maternity leave is 6 weeks if you're lucky - and even that might be unpaid. And you pay - every time you visit your GP, every time your child visits the GP, every single prescription for yourself, your kids, your 80 year old grandma - even with health insurance there's usually a co-pay.

Sorry, nothing to do with chicken pox, I know, just a bit of a pet peave for me.

We go over the US frequently and my dad is a paediatrician (in the US) so I could easily have gotten my kids vaccinated. We chose not not to. I believe the vaccine is safe but I also believe their immunity is better if they actually get chicken pox and in an otherwise healthy child is a completely harmless disease. DD had it when she was about 15 months - very itchy and spotty for a week then she was fine. It wasn't really a big deal. DS hasn't had it yet and my only worry is that he will get it at a really bad time (like just before a holiday or something). DH is also a pharmacist here in the UK and says the vaccine's effect on shingles is questionable - he believes there has been some info to suggest that shingles may be more common in those who have had the vaccine rather than the disease. Not 100% sure abou this last bit though.

I would like my ds to have the vaccine to avoid the scarring. Both my others had cp and have several scars, which I'd rather have avoided.

Cat me if you want to know the details of where to get the vaccine in Manchester, and I'll ask my friend at work.