RSV jab. To do, or not to do?

[Foxylass]

I hope this is the right place to ask.
My daughter in law (sons partner) and my daughter are both pregnant. The babies will be the first grandchildren in our family.

They have both been offered the RSV jab and are unsure about it. They are not anti-vaxers, they've both had other jabs.

They both look to me for advice, but it is so long since I was pregnant, and much has changed.

I've looked it up online, and to be honest, I am not much wiser.

I think actual experience would be great to learn from, to some extent. So I am looking to you for advice please?

Both 'mums' are UK based, neither smoke, both healthy, aged early 30's and late 20's (if any of that is useful).

I think the worry is, that it seems to be a fairly recent addition to the vax programmes and for a while it was banned.

Thank you in advance.

If they are due to have their babies around this season/after Xmas time especially it would be a very good idea to definitely have the vaccine. My baby is due next week so I chose to have them all - covid, flu, whooping cough & rsv. Would not at all want my baby to suffer horrendously if they weren't protected.

Sorry but "good luck" as in "good luck with the risk of getting this jab"? How nasty. But I'll suppose you'll say you definitely didn't mean that.

That would be enough to put most people off but apparently not you.

It clearly doesn't put the vast majority off who will be getting it or who would get it on this thread though, does it? Read the room here. There are pregnant women who have commented who want to do what's best for their unborn children. Your comment above really isn't helpful given this fact.

Both sides of an argument where on the one hand there are doctors and researchers trying to prevent baby deaths, and on the other side there are randoms on the internet?

I'd look at it like this: there's a common virus that makes it hard for babies to breathe. Now there's a vaccine which has been tested and found to be safe. Doctors will advise if it's unsuitable and risks.

I'd say sitting by a hospital bed while my baby struggled for breath with an oxygen mask on because of bronchiolitis has informed my opinion on this.

I simply cannot get the RSV jab for anything - all slots are gone to the elderly at my practice. The receptionists “can’t say” if there’ll be any more appointments orwhat I’m meant to do and I seemingly cannot get one privately.

So, I am sadly going to have to take my RSV chances with my late December baby 😢

I wasn't offered it and son was hospitalised with RSV at 5 months old. It was awful and also could have been a lot worse, especially if he'd caught it as a newborn instead. I will be jumping at the chance to get the vaccine if I'm offered it in future pregnancies.

Please mention to your midwife who can hopefully have a solution.

Does your hospital maternity/obs unit do vaccinations? At mine in the south you could just walk in and request. Otherwise I'd call your midwife and let them know

If they are wanting to do the best by their babies as you keep saying, then why are they even questioning this vaccine? There is no ‘informed choice’ to be made when it comes to taking a regulated vaccine in the UK that they have been advised to have by the midwives, the professionals, looking after them. The informed approach is to say yes because it’s recommended by the experts and saves babies. It’s not an informed approach to take an anti-vax mentality, when you are not in any way medically or scientifically educated. Why waste time thinking about this when the NHS scientists and researchers have done the hard work already and concluded it’s safe and recommended?!

I rushed out to get this vaccine as soon as it came out. I was the first pregnant woman to have it at my GP surgery. My baby was born a week later so it may not have totally taken effect for us as it can take up to 2 weeks to cross the placenta. I then struggled to breastfeed, so baby was getting one pumped bottle a day and the rest was formula. I wish the vaccine had been available earlier! I’m sad he may not be fully protected.

Definitely mention to your midwife or pregnancy unit, they should be able to get you an appointment- you may need to travel further but will be worth it.

I didn't know this had been put on the regular vaccination schedule (my two are 12 and 10) but I'd be absolutely thrilled to be able to get it. My eldest had to have RSV protective vaccinations once a month through winter when she was 7-12 months old, and then her second winter she was the only child in our NHS trust to be approved that year because she's had some complex heart lung issues and they don't normally give it a second winter but as we'd had to isolate her entirely for the first 12 months they felt she was too fragile and her immune system still too low to risk it.She was 16lb at 18 months old and even at that size she needed two vials a month in her second winer, at a cost of over £1000 a vial, for 5 months again, her paedeatrician said the number of babies he'd had to ventilate or send to another hospital for ICU or who arrived too late to help meant he would always fight to get RSV protection for every child he could regardless of the cost.

'Who better to ask than mum or mum-in-law?'

Someone with a modicum of knowledge on the subject?

Of course they should have it. Bronchiolitis is very nasty.

That's because it's your antenatal clinic who is funded to give it to you.

Whereabouts are you? I’m in East Anglia and we had the national roll out start here, however it’s only available in specific locations and pop up clinics for pregnant women and even then you need to be invited which is annoying! Our community midwives will get it mid-November so you might still be ok for a December baby if the rollout is ongoing. Very frustrating though when you want to get it

Having had my first in and out of hospital since he was four months because of bronchiolitis and the associated long term issues it can cause I would recommend this vaccine to anyone.

No experience with the jab but had it been offered during my pregnancy I would have 100% got it, I didn't get the COVID jab during pregnancy or when I was breastfeeding my first child due to my own views and research, and because it was to protect me and I felt more comfortable taking other precautions. However this RSV vaccine is for the baby, like the whooping cough jab which I did get, and I think it's worthwhile. Even more so if there are other children in the house who go to child care settings or other risk factors where they could be exposed. But everyone I know who has had a baby recently would have been signing up for the RSV jab for sure!

Absolutely fascinated by people who think that their family members or randoms on the internet are able to give them advice that is equal to medical professionals.

100% as an anaesthetist that's intubated many babies for rsv to take to picu

I had a bad reaction to the covid vaccine so was quite nervous about having another newly developed vaccine, but went ahead with it after reading about the testing and risks of rsv. No side effects and feel like it was the right choice for a winter born baby.

I've just returned from a 5 day hospital stay with my 14 week old baby girl who contracted RSV and bronchiolitis as a result. It has honestly been the worst experience of my life so far and I honestly thought I was going to lose her at one point.
I wish to God that no parent ever has to go through this and that if the vaccine had been present when I was pregnant, I would have accepted it in a heartbeat! Xx