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Original poster

Chicken pox - is immunity the same with jab as when caught naturally?

16 replies

PassTheTwiglets · 26/04/2013 09:22

Is there a difference in the immunity that you get from the chicken pox immunisation and the immunity that you get from catching it naturally? Is one better than another or is there no difference?

OP posts:

CatherinaJTV · 26/04/2013 10:30

about 10% of people get chicken pox (the disease) twice. You get that level of protection with 2x chicken pox vaccine, but slightly worse with just 1x vax.

Original poster

PassTheTwiglets · 26/04/2013 10:54

So vax immunity isn't as good if you have 1 jab but just as good if you have 2, is that right?

OP posts:

CatherinaJTV · 26/04/2013 11:21

that is how I understand the biomedical literature. As personal anecdote, my DS got chicken pox twice, my DD had had one chicken pox vaccine about a year before her brother contracted them and her one vaccine held beautifully. On the other hand, I know of several kids of US friends who had one shot and then got chicken pox very mildly (like 10 spots on their backs/tummies) much like my son's second wild infection.

MyTushTingles · 01/05/2013 00:08

My DCs have had the chicken pox vax. It's in 2 parts to provide them with the right level of immunity. As I understand it there is a chance they still might get chicken pox but likely it will be much milder because they have had the vax. Really glad we had it done because some friends DCs had CP recently and it was so much worse than they thought.

Original poster

PassTheTwiglets · 01/05/2013 09:22

I am really dreading CP, which is why I'm considering vaxing against it. But a bit disturbing to hear that you can still get it even with the vax! Can I ask how much it cost you?

OP posts:

MildDrPepperAddiction · 01/05/2013 09:39

The immunity from vaccine can wear off after a number of years leaving you vulnerable to contracting it as a teen / adult when it is more dangerous.

CatherinaJTV · 01/05/2013 11:33

there is no "ideal" age to contract chicken pox - all children I know of who had a chicken pox stroke (four in all) were 4 years old at the time of their infection, the daughter of a friend of mine, who nearly lost her leg due to chicken pox osteomyelitis was 2.5 years, the boy in my son's playgroup who was in hospital with seizures for a week with chicken pox was 18 months old, my friend's kids who had chicken pox from hell with pox under the eyelid, down throat, up privates, in the ear canal were 4 months and 4 years old.

My son was 6 months old when he first got chicken pox, with hundreds of lesions, he was 2.5 years old the next time he got chicken pox (only a handful of pox on his back). After cleaning poo out of pox (sounds like a Dr Seuss, but was a lot less fun) up to 6 times a day for 10 days, any further baby of mine would get the chicken pox vaccine at the risk of needing a booster before ttc.

MyTushTingles · 01/05/2013 11:50

They were ?80 each. Which I thought was very reasonable. Friend in the UK said she paid £60.

I know of one child who had the vax but still got it. She only had 2 spots total and they didn't cause her any problems, that's what I mean about getting it milder.

FadedSapphire · 01/05/2013 17:16

My ds age 3 has had one chickenpox vaccine last summer.
Chickenpox in his nursery so waiting with baited breath to see if vaccine 'holds' or he gets the pox....
Will let you know!

Tabitha8 · 01/05/2013 18:22

For it to be Chicken Pox, does anyone know if the spots have to blister? Can it be CPox without blisters?

GiveMumABreak · 01/05/2013 18:39

My DS and DD (now 9 and 12) both had chicken pox vaccines as babies. Neither of them have caught it, even after being around kids with it several times. I had chicken pox as a child and then shingles as an adult (one of the worst experiences of my life) I think any vaccine to can prevent this is worth it!

FadedSapphire · 01/05/2013 18:50

Hi Givemumabreak, did they have one vaccine or two?
My 3 year old not had booster.

Original poster

PassTheTwiglets · 02/05/2013 08:35

This is another thing I'm thinkign about - if they have the CP vaccine, does that mean they shouldn't get shingles later?

OP posts:

FadedSapphire · 02/05/2013 11:02

Another question....
If you have vaccine and it 'holds' and you don't get the pox when it is doing the rounds, does that mean your immunity is boosted each time you are exposed to it?

FadedSapphire · 02/05/2013 16:01

Well my little one's vaccine being well tested!

Another mum took her spotty son to park saying 'well most sensible parents won't mind'... mmm... she knows my views now but just shrugged. Her son playing in baby section and spots just couple of days old.
Cats bum face from me...I left before we really fell out.

twilight3 · 09/06/2013 19:47

my two youngest were born abroad so got two doses of a quadruple vaccine which was MMR + Varicella. DD never got CP although it went round the school twice now (she's almost 7, Y2), and DS got what DH and I called the "12hour CP". He got about 10 CP pox (confirmed by GP they were CP) in the afternoon, didn't bother him at all and were all gone by next morning.

PasstheTwiglets, this is one theory but it has not been proven. In fact studies in the US where the vaccine has been given routinely for several years have not found cases of Shingles to have increased among the vaccinated population.
However, even if this is the case, it can always be solved with a vac at late teens.

I got CP as a child, shingles as a young adult and I still have no immunity against varicella, a vac might or might not solve the problem apparently..... I'm just unlucky I guess.

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