Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
General health

Mumsnet doesn't verify the qualifications of users. If you have medical concerns, please consult a healthcare professional.

Original poster

Worried about vaccinations - anyone else feel the same?

200 replies

ladymac · 16/07/2007 10:13

DD is 15 weeks today. When we went for 1st jabs a few weeks ago, GP wouldn't give them because she had a cold. Since then I haven't gone back as she'd either been snuffly or we were away (jabs only done on mon afternoons).

We are going to Spain for a week on saturday and today is a jabs opportunity. Trouble is I've got really nervous about her having them. Worried about possible reactions and also if it could make her poorly for our hols.

At the same time I don't want her to get any nasty diseases.

I feel my views are somewhere in the middle of my HV and her evangelical jabs spiel, and the anti jabs brigade on the other side.

Any help/views/reassurance would be great.

OP posts:
ladylush · 16/07/2007 15:38

Spockster said there is no evidence single vax are safe or effective. Have not heard that and would like to know where she heard it.

amidaiwish · 16/07/2007 15:39

haven't read whole thread but there isn't really a big rush to get those jabs done you know...
i'd wait until you're home after hols, def don't give them any jabs if they're under the weather.

pagwatch · 16/07/2007 15:43

My son regressed very quickly from totally normal development in the two months following his MMR at 18 months. Beacuse he was at the upper age limit it was very apparent that he lost skills and lost them VERY quickly. At the same time he developed bowel problems. He is now 10 years old and profoundly autistic.
Based upon everything we have experienced, read, heard and investigated since then, DH and I have opted out of the whole vaccination programme for DS who is now 4 ( very nearly 5) and has no traces of any ASD or any related condition what so ever.

My point is that each child is different - their mediacal histories are different - and as parents we are best placed to decide what we want for our child having taken as much medical advice as we can process.

ladylush · 16/07/2007 15:46

Sorry to hear about your son's autism pagwatch. It defo sounds like the jab was to blame - too much of a coincidence. What did the health profs say?

gess · 16/07/2007 15:48

The media often says that, but its not really true (it's half true). Safety studies on the MMR have been said to be very inadequate (the cochrane report said that- in the same report where it recommended continued use of the MMR- so that wasn't from a biased source!). Safety studies on vacinations in general are usually inadequate.

When the MMR was introduced there were some conparisons made- and the single jabs were found to be slightly more effective. But strains used change so you would need to be strain specific when checking. A pubmed search throws up a number of few papers. But as age of administration has an effect as well you need to be a bit careful when comparing.

The strains used in the single jabs are the same as in the MMR (they do change over time and the MMR brand with the dodgiest safety record has been withdrawn).

Currently there are 2 brands of MMR given in the UK. One has been used for a number of years and had a better safety record than the one withdrawn. The other brand is new. If I was going for the MMR I would be requesting the older brand with the decent track record for safety. Unforunately I can't remember the name! But it's the oldest of the 2 in use.....

ladylush · 16/07/2007 15:50

Thank you gess - that is very useful info.

eleusis · 16/07/2007 15:52

Gess,
Can you shed some light on mumps for me. I think I've heard that the jab isn't really necessary in a toddler, but that mumps itself is damaging to teenage boys. Is that true? What are the consequences of say a 4 year old boy getting mumps?

gess · 16/07/2007 15:55

oh pagwatch we need to converse more by email. I wonder if I know you already .

We opted out of the vaccination program (and gluten and antibs etc) for ds2 and ds3 after ds1's autism dx. He's severely autistic. Ds2 and ds3 are fine. I;m the only person I know with an autistic child with 2 NT siblings. Everyone else I know with 3 children and autism in the family have 2 or all 3 affected.

Perhaps it is coincidence, but I'm going to continue treading carefully.

gess · 16/07/2007 15:57

eleusis - usually mild sometimes subclinical in young children.

Can potentially result in sterility after puberty, but that is extremely rare as usually even if it did affect the testes only one would be affected.

Mumps can cause viral meningitis as a complication (very unpleasant but not usually damaging), but so can MMR (that's why the brand with the urabe strain of mumps was withdrawn).

pagwatch · 16/07/2007 15:59

Ladylush
It was a bit of a moveable feast really. 1st GP insisted I had imagined DS's normal development ( although that got tricky for him as his surgery had done the developmental checks). 2nd GP listened as I asked him to monitor dS as I took out Gluten and casein and pronounced it "bollocks" but then turned out to be fab and supportive as DS improved massively when those ingredients were pulled.
The sad truth is that actually DS doesn't really matter anymore to health professionals. He sees the Doctor rarely and I manage his food and health pretty well.I don't mean they don't care but, given that they have not the slightest idea what caused his autism they therefore have no cure and I think that is a hard situation for those who regard themselves as healer.
I do however get uninformed , highly emotive and completely patronizing reactions from the Doctors that encounter DD and find she has not been vaccinated. Given that there are circumstances where a child should not be vaccinated ( egg allergy) it would be nice if just one of them could save me the walk through the wards of chiildren dying from measles.
Interestingly the consultant who diagnosed my son was asked directly by DH if they thought vaccines could be implicated in the rising rates of ASD. They were initailly silent but then eventually said said " well something is clearly going on....."

Original poster
ladymac · 16/07/2007 15:59

Hi everyone. We are back from the GP's where dd3 had her first lot of jabs. Was glad I had taken a friend with me.

I must admit I really don't like the pushiness of the health professionals when it comes to immunisation. I mentioned to the nurse how nervous I was about the whole thing and she replied 'Oh she'll be fine, just give her some calpol.'

I don't think they really listen, or they don't want to listen, if you raise any concerns about immunisation. They just want to meet their targets.

Dd3 sleeping now, I BF straight after the 2 jabs and again as soon as we got home.

OP posts:
eleusis · 16/07/2007 16:00

So really boys ought to get a booster around say age 12? That would make more sense than age 2.

gess · 16/07/2007 16:06

eleusis they do a teen booster in the States. I do think one needs to be introduced here.....

Pagwatch - I found the drs surprisingly OK about ds3 not having been vaccinated when he was in hospital following a febrile convulsion. (I did kind of pretend it had been postponed rather than cancelled). Only had a lecture from 1 (a junior). The consultants were surprisingly sympathetic.

Same hospital where my friend was told (off record) that her son's profound autism prob was MMR triggered though, perhaps they're open to it in private.

My GP came round as well, shortly before retiring he was advising me not to give ds2 & ds3 tetanus because we can't find it singly! I was slightly surprised tbh.

Original poster
ladymac · 16/07/2007 16:07

Pagwatch, I am sorry to hear about your son.

We have already decided to go the singles route when it is time for MMR. When dd1 (now 22) was little I'm sure MMR wasn't around. She had rubella jab when she was about 12.

OP posts:
ib · 16/07/2007 16:09

I have been reading this with interest as currently trying to decide what to do about ds, who is 6mo and hasn't yet had any jabs. I'm not anti-vax in principle, but we've had a rough ride so far with ds (dairy allergy and reflux) so now that he's finally OK we are treading carefully. I don't think I want to give him the 6 in 1, I'd rather give them more3 gradually, and was wondering if anyone else has done this?

eleusis · 16/07/2007 16:12

Hye gess, look here. They have single tenus on the pricelist www.childrensimmunisation.com/html/price-list.htm

eleusis · 16/07/2007 16:13

Oh my fabulous typing skills.

Highlander · 16/07/2007 16:15

I'm very pro-vax, but I tailored the schedule to suit me. The majority of babies in the Western world are bottle fed, hence the apparent 'rush' to start a schedule early. I reasoned that my sprogs, BF frequently on demand would have adequate passive immunity from my milk. Thus, they both didn't start the schedule until 4mo.

I also remember both my sisters being very, very ill with measles so ther was no hesitation to do the MMR.

DH is also a doctor and he says he is still traumatised from his time in Africa seeing toddlers die from diseases they could have been vaccinated against.

No medical intervention is 100% 'safe'. There will always be a low percentage of the population that have freaky side-effects, no matter how well tested that intervention is. Guess it's up to the individual to look at the evidence then assess their own personal situation

gess · 16/07/2007 16:23

wow thank you eleusis. I'll contact them......

pagwatch · 16/07/2007 16:24

Gess
I will do that thingy when I figure it out . Ds actually has an NT big brother so can I be in your club? ( When I had DD my mum said "oh how lovely , you have one of each " ROFL )
Must go - my gorgeous little "freaky side-effect" is home ....

eleusis · 16/07/2007 16:24

glad to help.

Original poster
ladymac · 16/07/2007 16:27

Sorry for ignorance, but what does NT stand for?

OP posts:
elliott · 16/07/2007 16:32

gess - I only know one person in RL with an autistic son and he has 3 NT siblings (2 girls and a boy).

eleusis · 16/07/2007 16:54

nt = neurologically typical

becksmummy · 16/07/2007 18:49

HI Again, some frightening stories on here, it is quite worrying that some do appear to be affected

for 270 pounds i wouldn't mind paying for single jabs, my concern here is how long between each jab AND whether or not there is a risk of contracting one or the other inbetween

any thoughts?