Whooping cough case confirmed in my daughter's school

[amandae]

I wish they would have given more information, like at least what grade the child is in. I always thought that they were immune because of vaccinations ...

It complicates matters that symptoms "initially begin with sneezing, runny nose, low grade fever and mild cough." This is allergy season in KS, how would we know if it's allergies or the beginning stages of whooping cough? The next part of the symptoms seems to be more clear, "within 2 weeks, the cough is more severe (numerous rapid coughs, inspiratory 'whoop' or vomiting)."

This has been a pretty bad year for illnesses in my daughter's school. A lot of us parents are just shaking our heads at this one. What's next?? At least there are only three more full weeks of school after this week.

[wildeyed]

1. Many parents won't immunize their children.

Puts them at risk for diseases we rarely see anymore like whooping cough. Also, I think I read that just because your child is immunized, doesn't mean they have 100% immunity, so look into that.

[trotsky]

2. Sad but true.

There's a growing anti-immunization crowd that has attracted many followers, quite a few even here at DU.

Outbreaks of things like whooping cough, measles, and who knows - maybe even polio, are a near certainty if the movement continues.

As you note, immunization is not perfect. Vaccination works by making the body manufacture antibodies for a particular pathogen. In a limited number of cases, the immune response is not triggered by the vaccine. I think I read that with the MMR vaccine, this is somewhere in the single digit percentage range, which is one of the primary reasons you get MMR "boosters" - if the first one failed to generate a response, odds are that the second one will.

Of course with enough people immunized, the population as a whole experiences what is termed "herd immunity". If there are not enough non-immunized individuals to support a link of contact, a disease cannot spread. That's where the anti-vaccination crowd comes in. As they scare more and more people into not vaccinating, the danger grows.

[Pithlet]

5. Yes. And it scares me.

Personally, and I know this will get flames, but I think vaccines should be mandatory before a child goes to school. I think it used to be this way. It was when I went to school.

[wildeyed]

6. I resent parents who won't immunize their kids.

They are relying on my kids and their immunizations to protect their kids. I have read about families that don't immunize, and after they suffer through a baby with whooping cough or something like that, they all turn around and get the shots. I guess part of this is that we don't see these diseases much anymore, we forget how scary and severe they are.

I have two close friends with kids diagnosed with Asperger's (low level autism), and neither one believes that immunizations caused it.

[Ravenseye]

8. Don't forget kids who can't get immunizations....

...because of allergies. They exist. They can't get the immunizations even if they wanted them.

The problem is that they rely on everyone else to get their immunizations and if some ignorant person doesn't have their kids get immunized and they get sick and pass it to the kid who had no choice...

that's just not right.

Twice there have been scares in modern countries over immunizations, once in Sweden, once in Japan...both were over the Thimerosol in vaccinations of Pertussis...A wave of people didn't get the vaccinations and shortly there were HUGE outbreaks of Pertussis killing many children.

Yes vaccines are dangerous and can kill or permanently harm your child, the problem though is the people who can't understand that exposing your children to the diseases these vaccinations protect against is far more dangerous to them and others.

[wildeyed]

9. I would completely understand if a child could not get a vaccination

due to an allergy. But your point about the danger from the diseases being worse than the danger from the vaccination for the average child is spot on.

Aren't they trying to eliminate the thimersol in vaccinations? I thought they had, but the nurse at my doctors said no, they had not.

[Ravenseye]

10. I would understand as well

my point is that kids with allergies have no protection against things like Pertussis OTHER than every other kid getting vaccinated. If a child who CAN get vaccinated DOESN'T and then gets sick and he passes it onto the child who is UNABLE to be vaccinated...

Well, in my head that's borderline criminal on the part of the parents who CHOSE not to vaccinate their child.

I'm not sure what the deal is with eliminating thimerosol. I think they are going to do it, but it hasn't been done yet. You might be able to request them but they cost more...probably an insurance issue or something stupid.

Still no valid study has shown that thimerosol is dangerous to children via vaccines...in fact all valid studies have shown no difference between children recieving thimerosol based solutions versus other ones.

The studies people bring out are either a couple specific ones that were debunked almost immediately as being unscientific and flawed studies or ones that don't directly relate to Thimerosol but instead environmental mercury which has definate connections to autism.

[trotsky]

11. I think thimerosal is no longer in the most common childhood vaccines.

Like MMR. But for flu shots, etc. it still is, and for good reason: it's an outstanding preservative. When it comes to helping the most number of people get the most effective vaccine, thimerosal has been a really valuable chemical.

Unlike environmental mercury, the mercury in thimerosal is expelled from the body within days - it's simply not there long enough to do any damage. But SHHHH... that's just a lie promoted by a massive conspiracy between the U.S. government and the vaccine manufacturers. ;-)

[mzmolly]

13. Your tempting me man.

:P ;)

[trotsky]

14. I learned something last night.

Thimerosal isn't, and never was, in the MMR vaccine.

http://www.cdc.gov/nip/vacsafe/concerns/thimerosal/faqs...

11. Do measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccines contain thimerosal?

No, MMR vaccine does not and never did contain thimerosal. Varicella (chickenpox), inactivated polio (IPV), and pneumococcal conjugate vaccines have also never contained thimerosal.

[mzmolly]

16. Broken link. However

The MMR-autism theory came to the forefront when, in 1998, Wakefield and colleagues reviewed reports of children with bowel disease and regressive developmental disorders, mostly autism. The researchers suggested that MMR vaccination led to intestinal abnormalities, resulting in impaired intestinal function and developmental regression within 24 hours to a few weeks of vaccination.

Mercury was not the issue with MMR.

[trotsky]

18. Ah, the moving target.

Naturally.

On edit - here's the fixed link.

http://www.cdc.gov/nip/vacsafe/concerns/thimerosal/faqs-thimerosal.htm#11

[mzmolly]

19. Yep it's confusing when they do that.

And there is much confusion. Though the MMR was linked to a bowel disorder not mercury I'm sure many were confused on that.

[trotsky]

21. It's very confusing when your anti-vaccination sources do that, yes.

Hopefully they can keep their boogeymen (or boogeyingredients, as the case may be) a little more straight in the future.

[mzmolly]

23. Actually my sources don't.

:hi:

Can you show me the source you take issue with?

The issue is/was MMR - AND - mercury containing vaccines.

[trotsky]

26. Your sources - the whale site especially -

blur the lines constantly. You yourself, in previous anti-vaccination screeds, have hopped between the MMR vaccine, thimerosal, etc. You and your sources tend to muddle the issues to the point of being able to say, "See how confusing it is? Why risk your child's well-being?"

It's dishonest, it's fearmongering, and I will let you have your precious last word now.

[mzmolly]

27. Again, link?

:hi:

[amandae]

7. It still is here

There were children last year, when my daughter started Kindergarten, who didn't have all of the necessary immunizations and were kept from attending school until they had documentation that they were immunized.

I'm sure there are ways around it, but I think that in this area those are definitely the exception.

After reading up on whooping cough I've found that the immunization is starting to wear off as early as age 10. That makes sense, since it was a 5th grader who had it. I guess health officials are seeing more cases of whooping cough in junior high.

I just worry about families with infants at home. Whooping cough is especially dangerous for newborns and families with newborns are not uncommon at all in elementary schools.

[mzmolly]

12. Whooping cough vaccination rates are the highest they've ever been.

Yet cases are increasing annually? Vax rates are over 90% in the US today. It's a myth that some choosing not to vax is causing an increase.

You can check the CDC website and verify vax coverage levels here:

http://www2.cdc.gov/nip/schoolsurv/nationalAvg.asp

People are pretty compliant frankly. As you can see about 96% of kids are "covered" by Kindergarten. 95.53%

One consideration may be the use of the partial cell vax as opposed to the whole cell? But as both vaccines have waining immunity over time, who knows? I personally think they're just getting more prudent at testing and thus diagnosing it myself. It helps keep people in line. ;)

Peace

:hi:

[trotsky]

15. Some more information about increasing whooping cough cases

http://www.siumed.edu/news/releasesFY05/WhoopingChaud.htm

Those most often diagnosed with whooping cough are young infants under the age of 2 months who are not yet vaccinated, as well as adolescents and young adults. More than 60 percent of the whooping cough cases reported in Illinois last year were experienced by those age 10 to 27 years.

There is concern the vaccine may be wearing off too soon, and that boosters in the teen years may be a good idea, though whooping cough is rarely fatal in adults and adolescents.

Clearly, though, anyone not vaccinated is at risk for getting the disease as well as spreading it to others.

[mzmolly]

17. Yep, those vulnerable are younger than 6 months and are not

considered protected until the third booster. And, any child above 6 months is not considered a likely casualty to WC because they have sufficient lung capacity. So this entire vaccine program is to protect babies from older carriers.

Further, a child is not considered fully protected until the third booster, which is given at 18 months, and how long the "protections" lasts is a crap shoot at this point. Also, as you point out, infants are exposed to people of all ages so?

Now that they're selling the childhood booster, were hearing more of this data about the disease in the older population.

Clearly, though, anyone not vaccinated is at risk for getting the disease as well as spreading it to others.

Absolutely! This was one of the main reasons I never bought the song and dance about vaccinating for Whooping Cough in the first place. Like I said to the CDC "every age group is exposed to babies" The person I spoke to said I raised a good point, and now perhaps were seeing the science catch up with logic. ;) My Pediatrician told me that doctors are the BIGGEST carriers of whooping cough, and she is discouraged that they don't make an adult version of the vaccine?

[trotsky]

20. So are you against pertussis vaccination or not? n/t

[mzmolly]

22. I am "Pro-Choice"

As Howard Dean says it's a matter of who makes your medical decisions you or the Government.

Now you see that one of my main issues with the "science" behind the this vax program was accurate. The CDC may be catching up with me is all Trotsky. ;)

Cheers

I'm off to Homeschool my child *gasp*

[trotsky]

24. That doesn't answer my question.

If you don't believe in vaccinating yourself or your children against pertussis, YOU are potentially putting at risk of death any baby you or they come in contact with.

That's certainly your choice, but it's a selfish and nasty choice.

[mzmolly]

25. Sorry, have YOU been vaccinated?

Seems to me we best all avoid babies then huh, because they don't make an adult vaccine. Perhaps the un-selfish and non-nasty should be pushing for one?

[Robb]

3. We had a pertussis (whooping cough) outbreak nearby here

...It frightened a lot of parents, since the kids diagnosed with it were all on the wrestling team, and had just been to a big meet. :eyes:

FWIW, my understanding is you won't confuse the onset of this disease with anything like even the most severe allergies. It's pretty rough.

The good news is the "outbreak" here was contained and very quickly. It's not the most communicable of diseases, needs good solid contact. Like wrestling. :eyes:

[Sticky]

4. My foster baby had whooping cough last year....

He coughed so much he turned blue because he couldn't inhale. I drove him to the ER - ON MY LAP!

It's an ongoing problem for him now because apparently it takes months to clear up. The intermittent attacks take all of his energy and leave him very quiet and sleepy.
Before he went home in March he was having scheduled checks on his blood/oxygen level.

I still worry about him every day.:loveya: