Immunization Questions - Columbia,PA

Hi K.,

My daughter's pediatrician gives 2 needles only at the most during each visit. She does the following schedule:

1 Month: Hepatitis B #1
2 Months: DTap #1 and Hib #1
3 Months: IPV #1 Hepatitis B #2 and Prevnar #1
4 Months: DTap #2 and Hib #2
5 Months: IPV #2 and Prevnar #2
6 Months: DTap #3 and Hib #3
9 Months: Hepatitis B #3 Prevnar #3 Hemoglobin Test for Anemia
12 Months: PPD for Tuberculosis and MMR #1
15 Months: Varivax (Chicken Pox) and Hib #4
18 Months: DTap #4 and IPV #3
2-3 years begin blood pressure screening

The pediatrician feels that education on immunizations is extremely important. She asked parents that attend her practice to please not search the internet due to information that is misrepresented because it can be written by parents or authority figures who have received payment to publish misinformation. She gave an example of this being the MMR and Autism link article, which was retracted due to information that was not valid and it was found that a large sum of money was received to write the article. She includes a list of reliable websites for immunization information. She asked that anyone who attends her practice who has concerns go to the following websites:

www.cdc.gov/nip or call 800.232.2522 (National Immunization Hotline)

www.partnersforimmunization.org
www.cipsimmunize.org
www.immunizationinfo.org/parents/evaluatingweb.cfm
www.vaccinesafety.edu
www.pkids.org (parents of kids with infectious diseases)

Hope this information helps!
S.

4 moms found this helpful

Good Luck in your search. There are different answers for everyone. We personally have chosen not to vaccinate our 2 yo daughter. That being said, it does not mean that we will not ever vaccinate her. My 2 older sons were both vaccinated on schedule, 1 has a mild case of autism.

The best advice I can give you is to read more before you decide. There is a lot of information available. 1 source is the National Vaccine Information Center. www.909shot.com

One thing that helped me with my decision was the European research on vaccines. Mandated vaccines were stopped in most European countries almost 20 years ago. Those countries have no higher incidents of the vaccinated illnesses than those in the US.

As for the vaccination schedule recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics.....There is no documented evidence that there is any benefit to children having these vaccines at the recommended ages. My personal opinion is that the ages were selected because it is when our children are available and routinely well when they see the Dr. Think about it. After our children are 2 or so, do we take them to the Dr just because? No, they go when they are ill. Vaccines can't be given when children are ill.

As I said, it doesn't mean that we will never vaccinate her. If we were going to a country that had high rates of an illness we would definitely get her vaccinated for that disease.

Good luck! Keep up the research. Find the answer that feels best for you and your baby. If the drs don't agree look for another.

4 moms found this helpful

i have recently had issues with my 9mo old daughter and her vaccines, the dr's tried to tell me it was milk allergies but she's still eating cheese and yogurt and isn't having the reaction she had the day after her 9mo vaccinations. i have tried and tried to put off certain vaccinations, or spread them apart time wise or separate them and we dont let them give our children any until 4-6mos. all the while feeling very pressured by my drs. my sister in law gave me some great advice, a little late for me. she does not vaccinate any of her children until they enter kindergarten - she's a stay at home mom and lives in rural pa. she goes to her drs in a long skirt and her hair in a bun, they think she's a religious fundamentalist (thats what she's deduced anyway) and they dont pressure her at all. she just tells them, "we dont need that, thank you". i feel that the dr's are doing their jobs by pressuring us to vaccinate, afraid of lawsuits, but i also feel its our responsibilty to protect our children and their fragile systems. babies can't handle some of the stuff they're putting in there, esp when they combine the vax and give them 5 at a time!

2 moms found this helpful

I think it's important to look at each vaccine and corresponding disease individually. Many of the diseases just aren't very scary; and it seems like the least worrisome diseases have the most dangerous vaccines. Some aren't a concern until later in life. Some don't offer any protection until the child is past the danger age. Some are really only geared toward non-breastfed or daycare babies.

One of the best sources for info is http://www.mothering.com/discussions/forumdisplay.php?f=47 . You have to dig for the info, but it's there. :)

2 moms found this helpful

Consumer Reports has a good article which you can read on their web site. I don't think you need to join to access the article. You can find it in the kids section.

1 mom found this helpful

A friend of mine does not vaccinate her kids at all because Autism runs strong in her family and she swears the autism is linked to the vaccines. She too stated she read a book about this but I am not sure if it is one that you have already read. I will find the name of the book and I know she has links for the info about the vaccines. When I have the info I will forward it to you. www.livegreeneasy.com

1 mom found this helpful

I also am NOT vaccinating my daughter and have found a wealth of information here:

http://www.justmommies.com/boards/index.php?showforum=664

It is a chat room set up for moms who are not vaccinating and there are so many many smart, smart women who really know their facts and can provide tons of links to great information. You may want to check it out. It really has helped me a lot.

As for Hep A here is a link that might interest you (it is for the National Vaccine Information Center):

http://www.909shot.com/Diseases/hepatitis%20a.htm

I wish you the best of luck in your research!

1 mom found this helpful

Hi!
I have 4 children and they get shots pretty much on schedule. Be sure that you read the sheet they give you about the various risks. One of my daughters did not react well to the MMR shot she got at 12 months. She ended up with one of the severe risks: a blood disorder that involved a low platelet count. The risk was listed as 1 in 30,000 doses. After a few days in the hospital and 6 months of once a week blood work, her count is where it should be. There should be no further problems. My younger daughter received her MMR shot at 12 months and was fine. The risk of getting the actual diseases seem to have worse consequences than the shots. Good luck with your decision.

1 mom found this helpful

We immunized our children on the schedule recommended by the pediatrician and also they get flu shots every year. There is a very small risk of permanent injury that is vastly outweighed by the danger presented by the illnesses that the vaccinations protect against. My youngest cried for two days straight after his four-month-old shots, but stopped the instant we took off the band-aid.

http://www.mamasource.com/request/recent/06074/1157568079/74
Hopefully this will work for you. Just click on Requests and Responses at the top and go through a few pages if hte link doesn't bring you directly there.

My daughter is 3 yrs. old and has received all the recommended immunizations except for chicken pox which she still has to get. She hasn't really had any problems from the shots and I am glad she's received them. Of course, no parent likes to see their child in pain but I knew immunizing her was the only way to protect her from a dangerous illness/disease. Immunizations have come a long way from the time they first developed and I trust my doctor in saying that they are safe. I do recommend giving your child Tylenol half an hour before her shots and then 4-6 hours later to prevent a fever or any discomfort.

K.,
Kudos for taking charge of your children's health. I hope you find the answers you are looking for. Seems to not be the case so far. I would share mine with you, but I too am searching for the right approach.

Best of luck.

Blessings,
Rolinda

Hello K.,

hope you have received responses to your questions! I can provide a little input on the MMR question.

I decided that my son should get the 3 shots separately and called my pediatrician to see if they would support it: no problem! So far he has recieved 2 shots (measles and mumps) and will receive rubella in another week (they are given a month apart). When I told a friend of mine what I was doing she tried her pediatrician, but they wouldn't give the single shot unless she was willing to pay USD 100 extra per shot, no coverage from insurance. We called around and found another pediatrist in Morristown that would administer the shots, but she would have to get a perscritpion and get it filled in a pharmacy, then they would administer them for her. So I know there are different ways of working it out - my friend decided to wait until her son is 2 for now,a s she's moving and wants to find a better pediatrician...
Not sure where Montville is, my pediatrician is Bergen West Pediatrics. Hope this helps...
Cheers
L.

When I was trying to decide to vaccinate my daughter, I asked for the package inserts from the vaccines. The dr was completely baffled, but gave them to me. After reading them, I had not problem deciding against them. She has not recieved any immunizations except the one they gave her in the hospital. She is 2 1/2 and only been sick once, just this past week with a severe cold that all of the family had. She has only been to the doctors once (with this cold) for a sick visit, and on medication this one time. The rest of my children were vaccinated up until 2 1/2 years ago and they have all had their bouts with illness much more than my daughter has. (some with the same illnesses that they were supposed to be vaccinated against!)

keep in mind that Cave's book is 6yrs old and the vaccines change daily, you pediatrician would be the best advise in my opinion. I work for a pediatrician and my children see a different pediatrician, both offices have different opinions, beliefs and vaccine schedules. as long as thier is no mercury in your child immunizations, it is the best interestof your child to get them. Also, hep A is now required for small children as where it wasn't years ago. Try getting consultations with other area pediatricians ( people do this all the time in our office, we have 7 physicians), see what thier take is on this topic.

Both of my boys ages 2 and 4 have followed the recommended course of vaccinations given by our pediatrician. Neither one has had any adverse reactions to any vaccinations. I personally think there is more of a risk to not have them vaccinated. Good luck