Minnesota Infant Infected with Polio Virus

[concernedperson]

Thats just it CP the vaccines doesn't prevent Chicken Pox.

Oh, I see. My comprehension skills are so off lately. LOL. I was quarantined for 10 days not that I would give others shingles but that I could give them chicken pox. The docs didn't want a multitude of people coming down with chicken pox so that proves your point.....if they were vaccinated why would they worry!

 

[JBean]

Along these lines, Chicken Pox parties are coming back into vogue. Parents are placing their healthy children with children infected with Chicken pox as an alternative to the vaccine. Experts advise against in most cases.

This used to be done years ago and now it is gaining in popularity again.Seems like a vaccine would be a better way to go. but my kids had chicken pox as the vaccine was not available to them.

 

[JBean]

A Pox on My Child: Cool!





By Shannon Henry
Special to The Washington Post
Tuesday, September 20, 2005; Page HE01



When Trish Thackston's 7-year-old son, Connor, broke out with chickenpox recently, she quickly scheduled play dates with four families over the next four days at their Alexandria house.

The kids made art projects with glue and glitter, worked side by side on dinosaur puzzles and shared spoons, all with the intention of transmitting the illness to the healthy children. Her son, thrilled not to be sequestered from friends as he usually is on sick days, said excitedly one morning: "Who's coming over to catch my chickenpox today


http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/19/AR2005091901225.html

 

[Tom'sGirl]

Along these lines, Chicken Pox parties are coming back into vogue. Parents are placing their healthy children with children infected with Chicken pox as an alternative to the vaccine. Experts advise against in most cases.

This used to be done years ago and now it is gaining in popularity again.Seems like a vaccine would be a better way to go. but my kids had chicken pox as the vaccine was not available to them.

I also had Chicken Pox as a kid, but never got measles or mumps for some reason . My cousin who was younger than me came down with EVERYTHING THERE WAS OUT THERE and it was my families hope that I would get whatever she had and get it over with. I even slept with her and never got anything. Of course she got CP from me........LOL.

My daughter had CP, as with your kids, no vaccine for it then. The worst part was the scars that sometimes remained, and usually for some reason they were on the face.

 

[vanillasky]

I remember the "chicken pox parties"... I had to go to several of them, and still never contracted it. To this day, I've never had chicken pox or had a vaccination for it.

 

[Amraann]

LOL I remember them too.


The problem with the Vaccine is that it has caused a mutation of the Chicken pox virus.
SO with the vaccine you can still get a mutated form which is actually more dangerous.

 

[BillyGoatGruff]

About chicken pox...I had it as a child and as an adult I have suffered with facial shingles for the better part of the last six months.It has caused some nerve damage and definitely scarring, fatigue and depression. One can only contact shingles if they had chicken pox as a kid. So, IMO and my experience don't contact chicken pox. Oh, I forgot to add how painful it was.

My aunt, god bless her, has lived her entire adult life with horrible scars on her face from small pox. She was born before vaccinations were enforced in the public school system. I can not imagine anyone wanting to risk their child that way.

 

[Tom'sGirl]

My aunt, god bless her, has lived her entire adult life with horrible scars on her face from small pox. She was born before vaccinations were enforced in the public school system. I can not imagine anyone wanting to risk their child that way.

Chicken Pox is what we're referring to here BGG, not the Small Pox of years ago, which was terrible.

SNIP: Smallpox outbreaks have occurred from time to time for thousands of years, but the disease is now eradicated after a successful worldwide vaccination program. The last case of smallpox in the United States was in 1949. The last naturally occurring case in the world was in Somalia in 1977. After the disease was eliminated from the world, routine vaccination against smallpox among the general public was stopped because it was no longer necessary for prevention.


http://www.bt.cdc.gov/agent/smallpox/overview/disease-facts.asp

 

[vanillasky]

Updated article....

Full story: http://www.startribune.com/stories/1556/5649776.html


How did a baby in central Minnesota contract the virus that causes polio, a crippling disease that was essentially wiped out in the United States a quarter century ago?

That question has mystified state and federal health officials since tests confirmed the polio virus in an unidentified infant last week.

The case is especially puzzling because the baby, who was born in this country, was somehow exposed to a strain of virus found in oral polio vaccines, which haven't been used in the United States for five years.

"[It] is not a public health concern for the general public," said Kris Ehresmann, chief of immunization at the Minnesota Health Department. "But it is definitely a situation that is of great scientific interest. It's a unique situation."

Investigators now are testing relatives and others who have had close contact with the child to see whether anyone else may have been infected. They suspect that someone contracted the polio virus in another country and unwittingly passed it on.

The baby had no symptoms of polio, Ehresmann said. The virus was discovered during tests while the child was hospitalized for an unrelated immune condition. Officials declined to identify the child's gender or age, saying only that he or she is less than a year old.

The Health Department was asked to run lab tests to find out whether a virus was making the child sick. When no routine viruses showed up, they started looking for obscure ones. And they found the polio virus.

The child hadn't been vaccinated against polio, apparently because of underlying medical problems.

 

[Tom'sGirl]

Updated article....

Full story: http://www.startribune.com/stories/1556/5649776.html

Wow, that is something. I wonder IF one of the family is the carrier. Keep us updated if you learn anything else Simon.

 

[JBean]

I also had Chicken Pox as a kid, but never got measles or mumps for some reason . My cousin who was younger than me came down with EVERYTHING THERE WAS OUT THERE and it was my families hope that I would get whatever she had and get it over with. I even slept with her and never got anything. Of course she got CP from me........LOL.

My daughter had CP, as with your kids, no vaccine for it then. The worst part was the scars that sometimes remained, and usually for some reason they were on the face.

I had to go to a pox party when I was in 8th grade, because I had not contracted them yet. But with 7 brothers and sisters , that only meant walking down the hall into my little brothers room and catching them in there! lol.
I had mumps, but got the measle vaccine. I found out in my adult years that my measle vaccine had "expired" so I had to have another one as an adult.

By the time I was ready to have children, I hadn't had german measles or been vaccinated. So as SOP, I was given a german measle vaccine before trying to conceive. Is that still recommended ? I had to be vaccinated and then wait 3 months before trying to have children. Is that still standard or recommended?

 

[CyberLaw]

German measles can cause birth defects in children.

If you did not have a standard immunization, you are at a risk of contracting the disease. This could cause SERIOUS harm to the unborn child.

So the Doctor gave you an immunization, let the antibodies work for three months to ensure you are immune to the disease and will not catch it, or even at risk of catching it during pregnancy.

All for the safety of the unborn child.

A religious group here, did not get any of the children or adults immunized.

German measles outbreak. 6 women were pregnant when they contracted German measles..........I won't go into the rest.........

Be very thankful that you had a doctor who had the foresight to give you this shot before you go pregnant.......

 

[JBean]

German measles can cause birth defects in children.

If you did not have a standard immunization, you are at a risk of contracting the disease. This could cause SERIOUS harm to the unborn child.

So the Doctor gave you an immunization, let the antibodies work for three months to ensure you are immune to the disease and will not catch it, or even at risk of catching it during pregnancy.

All for the safety of the unborn child.

A religious group here, did not get any of the children or adults immunized.

German measles outbreak. 6 women were pregnant when they contracted German measles..........I won't go into the rest.........

Be very thankful that you had a doctor who had the foresight to give you this shot before you go pregnant.......

Oh I understand that CYber! Thank you. I am very grateful to that doctor.
But what I was wondering was if most doctors still do this and if is it still standard practice these days?

ETA: I remember I was NOT happy at the time. I was ready to start trying and my doctor forbade me! He scared the heck out if me and insisted that I have the shot first. Seemed like waiting three months was an eternity at the time lol! PLus the shot made me very ill. But of course, I am sure glad I followed doctors orders.

 

[CyberLaw]

I think most doctors would take it for granted that their patient(depending on their ages) would have received the MMR shot during the early years.

But if a patient cannot recall or does not have records, then err on the side of caution, because to not err on the side of caution could have serious medical and legal ramifications.

MMR's by the way.......does not cause autism in children of any age......that is a long discounted myth.

My oldest had a adverse reaction to one of the MMR shots, just mainly a fever, aches and pains and generally not feeling well......but it lasted for about a day and then he was fine........

When it comes to pregnancy it is always wise to follow doctors orders.

You knew and informed your Doctor that you had not had German Measels or the shot. Good thing you knew this......a lot of people don't......

 

[KrazyKollector]

Along these lines, Chicken Pox parties are coming back into vogue. Parents are placing their healthy children with children infected with Chicken pox as an alternative to the vaccine. Experts advise against in most cases.

This used to be done years ago and now it is gaining in popularity again.Seems like a vaccine would be a better way to go. but my kids had chicken pox as the vaccine was not available to them.

My DD didn't get chicken pox until she was 8 yrs old. She still bears the scars. They invaded her nose, her mouth, her eyes, her throat and her private areas, inside and out. I would not wish what she went through on my worse enemy and that alone speaks volumes.
Now my DS contracted it when he six or seven. Along with the flu and strep throat. WE were SO lucky because by then, although the vaccines had not yet come out, they did have Acyclovir that had been okayed for use in chicken pox. We were even luckier that we had prescription coverage. My son took the medicine and as he would get new "pox", my DD would dab on Calamine and an hour later the blister would be gone and the pox starting to heal. (I had to go out of town to take care of my mom and missed all this)
He still got a lot of pox, but none in any painful areas, no scaring and his case of it was shortened by days.

I don't mean to offend anyone here but my opinion is this: your child deserves whatever help he/she can get to spare them from even chicken pox. Some children can get very ill and be miserable for days. You don't want to give them the vaccine, then you should have to be forced to buy the anti-viral drug. If something can help a child and it's not done, then I see no difference between that and beating your child. Sorry--JMHO.
BTW--I had chicken pox and have had shingles twice. Again, I am grateful dor Acyclovir as I thought I was going to die at one point. It shortened the duration of the outbreak. I also thank my lucky stars for Percocet. Another life saver for me.

I know medicine is not perfect and sometimes, things are found out the hard way, such as virus and children and asprin= potential Reye's Syndrome victims.
Do we need to work harder to make the vaccines safer but still as effective? Heck yeah! Do we stop giving them to our children until it's all 100% safe? HE\\ NO!

Again, the above is JMHO, a right I cherish everyday!

 

[JBean]

I think most doctors would take it for granted that their patient(depending on their ages) would have received the MMR shot during the early years.

But if a patient cannot recall or does not have records, then err on the side of caution, because to not err on the side of caution could have serious medical and legal ramifications.

MMR's by the way.......does not cause autism in children of any age......that is a long discounted myth.

My oldest had a adverse reaction to one of the MMR shots, just mainly a fever, aches and pains and generally not feeling well......but it lasted for about a day and then he was fine........

When it comes to pregnancy it is always wise to follow doctors orders.

You knew and informed your Doctor that you had not had German Measels or the shot. Good thing you knew this......a lot of people don't......

I had the adverse reaction to the Rubella shot too. Really just a mild case of GM.
You have reminded me that MMR shots are standard now, but not when I was growing up. So I see your point that this would be less important these days, not to be vaccinated, but that most women would have had it.
Thanks Cyber for your info.

I do have the dreaded smallpox booster scar. I remember that shot like it was yesterday!

 

[JBean]

My DD didn't get chicken pox until she was 8 yrs old. She still bears the scars. !

Hi KK.
You know back in the day when my kids contracted CP, doctor said if they had it under the age of one, there was a good chance they would get it again. A couple of mine did have it very young like that due to the older ones. Their cases were very mild and generally easy on everyone.
Does anyone know if this is still thought to be true? I think it was controversial at the time and since I am so out of the kid-vaccine loop, I'm curious what the current beliefs are. I wonder if my kids that had it under the age of one, should get the vaccine which didn't even exist when they were young. Thoughts?

 

[KrazyKollector]

I had the adverse reaction to the Rubella shot too. Really just a mild case of GM.
You have reminded me that MMR shots are standard now, but not when I was growing up. So I see your point that this would be less important these days, not to be vaccintated, but that most women would have had it.
Thanks Cyber for your info.

I do have the dreaded smallpox booster scar. I remeber that shot like it was yesterday!

I have one too! I remember my younger days when we would compare them and see whose looked the coolest. One girl had a scar that really looked like a divided pie. Another had one that looked a lot like a record and another whose looked like a star. Mine mostly resembled a mishmash but had Christmas ornament look to it (the kind out of glass with the middle caved in and all angled for light reflection).

The things we still remember as we age.....LOL!

 

[JBean]

I have one too! I remember my younger days when we would compare them and see whose looked the coolest. One girl had a scar that really looked like a divided pie. Another had one that looked a lot like a record and another whose looked like a star. Mine mostly resembled a mishmash but had Christmas ornament look to it (the kind out of glass with the middle caved in and all angled for light reflection).

The things we still remember as we age.....LOL!

Mine just looks like crap.

 

[KrazyKollector]

Hi KK.
You know back in the day when my kids contracted CP, doctor said if they had it under the age of one, there was a good chance they would get it again. A couple of mine did have it very young like that due to the older ones. Their cases were very mild and generally easy on everyone.
Does anyone know if this is still thought to be true? I think it was controversial at the time and since I am so out of the kid-vaccine loop, I'm curious what the current beliefs are. I wonder if my kids that had it under the age of one, should get the vaccine which didn't even exist when they were young. Thoughts?

If they had it under a year, then they are at risk to get it again, possibly as an adult. Even with the anti-viral Acyclovir to help, it's still miserable until it begins to work.
I would check with your doctor and get his/her opinion. But, if it was me, I'd be wanting them to get the vaccine.

It's not just the CP that can be dangerous. Sometimes, as in my DS's case, it can come when their resistance is already down. I had taken him to the doctor that one day because he was ill. Fever, sore throat, stomach ills.
His strep test was positive but because of the flu, they wanted to hold off on the antibiotic for a few days, to minimize any complications. But, my DH had gotten rheumatic fever as a child, so we couldn't take the chance with DS. So, he got the antibiotic. Three hours after we got home from the doc's, DS comes to show me an itchy spot that was bothering him. Yep, chicken pox.
But, now the doc was really concerned. He was afraid that with his immune system already fighting three things, the antibiotics could cause the CP to mess around inside and make him even sicker. (Not good to take antibiotics when you have 2 viruses and a strep-not sure why but I think it makes the virus get stronger). Because of the rheumatic fever DH had experienced, we decided to chance the antibiotic and give him the Acyclovir and monitor him 24/7 for the first few days.

Now, imagine how I felt when I had to go take my Mom to FL the next day because of her heart? I ran up over $200 in phone calls for those four days. Luckily, my DD was 16 and being the angel she ususally was, she stayed home and played "Mommy". They were attached to the hip anyways and he loved her being home with him much more than me. LOL!
But still, the guilt lives on and on.............

Geeze, now I have the guilties! I hope DD or DS doesn't ask for anything today. My guilt conscience would say yes before my wallet conscience could chime in....:truce: :truce: :blushing: :blushing: :blushing: