Shot of Prevention

When it comes to issues regarding disease prevention, our choices impact our children now and throughout their adult life.  Whether we choose to vaccinate our children or not, or delay certain vaccines or not, we are making decisions that have consequences.

A child who falls ill with a vaccine preventable disease may end up just fine.  However, others will have to endure permanent health problems.  And still others will suffer and die, like the many whose stories appear on sites like Vaccinate Your Baby and Shot by Shot.

Earlier this week a comment on the Vaccinate Your Baby Facebook page that made me think about the challenges parents face.  A concerned mother, seeking guidance states:

“I have a 28 month old son and have been delaying and selectively vaccinating. I am looking for a neutral page where I can find information to help me make decisions about what vaccines to get. This page appears to be a page that will deliver only one side of the story. Where can I go to get information both positive and negative about vaccinating? I am faced with some decisions very soon and wish to make an informed decision. I have read some information about vaccines, but not enough to be comfortable just yet.”

I have heard these sentiments echoed time and time again.  When faced with uncertainty, parents often delay or selectively vaccinate until they can feel more comfortable with the idea.  While I understand this rationale on an emotional level, I believe that parents must begin by understanding the importance of research, science and statistics in order to make an informed decision.  In other words, it’s not that parents should look for a “neutral page”, as this mother suggests, but more importantly, an accurate one that uses scientific evidence to support their recommendations. Read more…

By Carol J. Baker, MD

Every flu season is different and unpredictable, but each year influenza causes children to get sick, and can lead to hospitalizations and even deaths.

While influenza can be serious, vaccination is safe. Millions of children have received the flu vaccine without serious effects other than a day or two of a low grade fever, decreased activity, or discomfort at the injection site, for those who receive the injected vaccine, or a runny nose, for those who receive the nasal spray.

Yet, despite this body of evidence many people continue to have questions about the safety of influenza vaccines. The National Foundation for Infectious Disease conducted research this year that found that nearly three-quarters (73 percent) of mothers surveyed said that reassurance that the vaccine is safe and carefully tested would make them more interested in vaccinating their children this year.

Here are the facts. Read more…

By Amy Pisani

The Food & Drug Administration just announced a temporary suspension of Rotarix vaccine (manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline to prevent infantile diarrhea) due to the detection of contamination with what appears to be a non harmful virus strain. According to the CDC, the majority of children here in the U.S. receive an alternate vaccine made by a separate manufacturer.  This vaccine is called RotaTeq.  There has been no contamination detected in this vaccine.  Those children who received the complete series of Rotarix do not need to be revaccinated. Those who still need more doses of Rotarix will receive the RotaTeq vaccine instead during further investigation.

Below is an excerpt from the FDA website regarding the matter:

“FDA has learned that DNA from porcine circovirus type 1 (PCV1) is present in Rotarix.  This finding was reported to FDA by GlaxoSmithKline, based on work originally performed by an independent U.S. academic research team using a novel technique to look for viruses. GlaxoSmithKline conducted additional studies and confirmed that DNA from PCV1 is present in the finished Rotarix vaccine, as well as in the cell bank and seed from which the vaccine is derived.  This confirms that the DNA from PCV1 has been present since the early stages of the vaccine’s development, including during clinical studies.

There is no evidence at this time that DNA from PCV1 in Rotarix poses a safety risk.  PCV1 is not known to cause any disease in animals or humans.  Rotarix has been extensively studied, before and after approval, and found to have an excellent safety record….The FDA is continuing to investigate the finding of DNA from PCV1 in Rotarix.  While FDA is gathering additional information to present to its expert advisory committee in four to six weeks, the agency recommends that clinicians and public health professionals in the United States temporarily suspend the use of Rotarix.”

Please visit the FDA Web site for more information: 

http://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/PublicHealthFocus/ucm205585.htm#news