Chicken pox vaccine pros/cons

[Daffodil0407]

I have just found out about the chicken pox vaccine and need to do my own research on it first. What's everyone's thoughts on it please?

I don’t think it would be 6 weeks?

Also if he catches it naturally he would definitely need to avoid your mum

My children have had it. I was very ill with it as a child and still have visible scars from CP.

When I looked into it l, admittedly a decade ago, the main reasons it wasn’t on the NHS schedule were reluctance to add in more given low take up rates of other vaccines, cost and that CP circling in society reduced risks of shingles in elderly. Given there is a shingles vaccine for elderly and I could pay, I felt no reason not to. There was a small question mark over long term effective as but I felt I could pay for boosters when teens if necessary.

My daughter had the chicken pox vaccine when she was 14 months and I think it was worth the cost (£150). My friend’s children got chicken pox a few months ago and had it very badly. She had to take over a week off work, they couldn’t go to nursery or go anywhere while the kids were infectious. And both kids have a lot of scars on their backs and legs now. And they got it right before a family holiday, which they then couldn’t go on!

Some kids get it mildly and scarring isn’t that common, but I’m so glad we got our DD the vaccine! She didn’t have any side effects, and so far now it’s been totally effective.

The CDC has info here
https://www.immunize.org/ask-experts/after-receiving-varicella-vaccine-should-healthcare-personnel-avoid-contact-with-immunocompromised-patients/

Of course it is possible your mum has never had it but I would suspect more likely she has had it at some point but it was very mild and she didn’t realise it. You can get tested for immunity which she might find helpful.

Example of a CP immunity test. Not used myself

www.oxfordonlinepharmacy.co.uk/self-testing-kits/varicella-zoster-chickenpox-immunity-blood-test

It’s a standard childhood vaccination in Australia and provided free by the government. My DD is vaccinated against it. My nieces are vaccinated and caught chicken pox but it was very very mild.

I didn’t realise that there was a vaccine until I was getting DD vaccinated. I’ve never had chicken pox. A blood test confirmed that I had no immunity to it so I paid to be vaccinated.

My DH had chicken pox badly as a child. Horribly itchy and covered in blisters everywhere and I mean everywhere. He still has scars from it.

Not getting chicken pox will hopefully mean no chance of shingles later in life. In Australia we’ve recently had new shingles vaccinations become available.

It's very likely your mum has had it, but mildly - I think it would be unlikely to get to middle/later age without being exposed to it. When your son gets it from nursery she'll definitely be exposed if she sees him regularly.

My son was vaccinated age 1 and had absolutely no reaction at all. He's been through multiple outbreaks at nursery and school - including half the class being off with it - with no symptoms other than once he had some slightly raided spots on his tummy which faded quickly. Probably just a coincidence tbh.

We were told to look into whether immunity was shown to decline before he went to uni, and if so to get a booster. Looks so far like it doesn't but they 'only' have 30ish years' data so far.

Both mine have had it.

Their cousins have had chickenpox. Mine played with them but didn't catch it- hoping it built up their immunity further.

For me the pros were- they wpuld get sock. Some can get very ill and uncomfortable with it. Some only ever get it mildly. But didn't want to take the chance.

If they never catch it as kids. They don't have to worry about it when an adult- if pregnant and had contact with chickenpox.

If they got ill. I wouldn't have to take a week off work to care for them.

It worked out well.

Hopefully within the next couple of years it might be put into the routine imms- but existing children wouldn't be eligible for it.

My sisters kids has really severe eczema, her skin is very bad.

She got her vaccinated she didn't want to risk her skin worsening.

My (now 5yo) DD had the vaccine at 1yo - no side effects at all, definitely worth doing for peace of mind when there's an outbreak at school. We did it because I was a SAHM so she wasn't at nursery until 3.5 - I remember by DB getting it age 8ish and finding it very itchy/painful so I didn't want her to get it later like him (I had it age 3 and barely remember it- my DPs had it at the same time as me in their late 20s and really suffered!)

The recommendation from the JCVi does actually include a catch up programme for older children, but that would obviously take time

Definitely discuss it rather than relying on my experience as they will be able to clarify all the details. In our case we just said it's no issue and then we moved on. If we'd had more detailed questions he would have answered in more nuance ( e g there was a very rare previous treatment that we brought up and he gave us the full details and that matched up with our existing understanding of how the treatment and jab might interact)

Both of mine had the vaccine at 12 months old. I paid £75 per dose, six weeks apart at a private GP surgery. Neither had any side effects whatsoever.
They are now 11 and 7, they’ve never caught even a mild dose of chickenpox even though it did the rounds several times while they were in nursery & KS1.
Other than cost, I genuinely don’t see any other cons to vaccination.

I don’t know what stock is like at the moment, but there are periods when it’s hard to get hold of. I had my youngest vaccinated, but when my eldest had it, I’m ashamed to say I didn’t even realise about a vaccine or would have got it then too. There are other countries who have been vaccinating kids for chickenpox as part of routine immunisations for years.

Mine are now 16 and 13, both had the vaccination very young (after I found out about it on Mumsnet!). No side effects, no sign of CP at any point.

I can help there re availability as our kids had it recently and the place said drop in any day as they nearly always have it in stock.

Exactly this.

The only con for us was having to sell a kidney to vaccinate 3 dc.

Mine had the chicken pox vaccine. Was a super poorly baby who took any virus hard and ended up in hospital. Pro - avoiding another virus related hospital stay. Con - the cost £150...but no con really as I'd have paid X10 that if it meant avoiding a blue light in an ambulance or having my child admitted to the children's ward. Lots of kids get CP and handle it fine. I just knew we wouldn't.

There are no cons if you can get it on the NhS! I vaccinated both of mine privately, not a single regret. CP can be horrendous

One of my 3 children had cp really badly. It was one of the worst things I’ve experienced as a parent. Definitely I would vaccinate

So worth it if you can afford it! Even just one dose if your child gets it, it is likely to be mild.
your mum could get it too.

My three DC were all vaccinated and have been exposed multiple times. The eldest caught it but had a very mild case (though still necessitated a week off work). The younger two have avoided it.

I still regularly get phone calls from the school asking me to come and pick up DC because of some 'suspicious' spot that they think could be chickenpox. The odds of getting chickenpox after being vaccinated are low. The odds of getting chickenpox twice in a lifetime are even lower. The odds of getting chickenpox twice within two years, after being vaccinated, when there's not even an outbreak doing the rounds? Practically zero. They still send her home.

The chickenpox vaccine is part of routine childhood vaccinations in many countries.

Cost is the only reason why the NHS has not yet adopted it. They really should.

At 14, I had a horrendous bout, spots in, and on, every part of my body. An adult colleague was hospitalised. DH caught it and I had to stay home and nurse him as he was very poorly, including badly inflamed spots needing antibiotics. The vaccinations are a no-brainer imo.