unsinkable Posted October 22, 2009 Share Posted October 22, 2009 OK, I don't know what happened to get my last thread on this closed but it was closed but the title was not deleted so I am assuming I can talk about this. 14 yo DS -- titer was positive. 15 yo DD -- titer was negative...How in the heck can this have happened? I honestly can't remember illnesses not going thru our entire house/all the kids. The peds office secretary called me with the results but seemed like she was in a hurry to get off the phone. I said I'd call back about an appointment with the nurse and the secretary said: "Good. Don't bother them now. They are so busy with this flu." :001_huh: :001_huh: :001_huh: I am actually wondering if the secretary got it wrong. I have to get 11 yo DS tested. If DD 15 isn't immune & DS 11 isn't immune, should I get them both the vaccine? Or should I wait until DS 11 is a bit older? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mary in VA Posted October 22, 2009 Share Posted October 22, 2009 I had the chicken pox at 32 and was sick as a dog! I had it between my two pregnancies and was so thankful on the timing. Of course I would have rather not had it at all, but they weren't giving the vaccine yet, and to be honest I never even thought about it. I actually gave it to my then 2yo dd. She had a light case and I had over 100 pox on my face and head alone, a high fever, fatigue, and aches and pains. I can still remember my dd's sweet little voice telling me as I soaked in an oatmeal bath, "Don't scratch Mommy!" Even teens can get it worse than young children, so I'd recommend getting her innoculated. Mary Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommyrooch Posted October 22, 2009 Share Posted October 22, 2009 OK, I don't know what happened to get my last thread on this closed but it was closed but the title was not deleted so I am assuming I can talk about this. 14 yo DS -- titer was positive. 15 yo DD -- titer was negative...How in the heck can this have happened? I honestly can't remember illnesses not going thru our entire house/all the kids. The peds office secretary called me with the results but seemed like she was in a hurry to get off the phone. I said I'd call back about an appointment with the nurse and the secretary said: "Good. Don't bother them now. They are so busy with this flu." :001_huh: :001_huh: :001_huh: I am actually wondering if the secretary got it wrong. I have to get 11 yo DS tested. If DD 15 isn't immune & DS 11 isn't immune, should I get them both the vaccine? Or should I wait until DS 11 is a bit older? I'd absolutely get them both vaccinated. Varicella can be a really ugly thing for older children and adults. I would certainly want to get them protection from that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jean too Posted October 22, 2009 Share Posted October 22, 2009 Are you sure they read the report correctly? During my first pregnancy I was told that my titer was neg. for Ruebella even though I had been vaccinated in my early twenties. Later, it was discovered that the report was not read correctly and I did have immunity. Ask for your dd's numbers and the norms for that particular titer. If the report is correct, I would absolutely get the vaccination for your dd. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MariannNOVA Posted October 22, 2009 Share Posted October 22, 2009 I would not get her the vaccine. She may not have a titer count b/c perhaps she has a natural immunity in which case, she may have been exposed to chicken pox and did get them b/c of her immunity. My DD29 received the vaccination in spite of a low titer and it triggered a nighmare of reactions - which 7 years later she is still disabled from. Turns out, she did have a natural immunity, and that should have been respected. PM me if you have any questions. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starr Posted October 22, 2009 Share Posted October 22, 2009 It's nasty stuff to get at this age and older. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie in CA Posted October 22, 2009 Share Posted October 22, 2009 Mine was negative for chicken pox at age 23, and I was in the middle of having my 5 dc. I picked a moment when I wasn't pregnant or nursing, and had the vax. It gave me no trouble at all, whereas having the chicken pox along with pregnancies and caring for a bunch of little kids at once would have blown me out of the water. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HollyDay Posted October 22, 2009 Share Posted October 22, 2009 My understanding of the varicella vaccine is that it only gives immunity for about 10 years. So, if she got the vaccine as a child, could it have been 10 years ago? Yes, the illness is much worse as an adult. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matryoshka Posted October 22, 2009 Share Posted October 22, 2009 I would not get her the vaccine. She may not have a titer count b/c perhaps she has a natural immunity in which case, she may have been exposed to chicken pox and did get them b/c of her immunity. But I don't think this is true. My mom never had chicken pox that she knew of, but also never caught it in spite of being a kindergarten teacher for years. She finally had her titers checked when my kids had it (I didn't want them to be the ones who finally gave it to her), and the titers showed she was immune. Even nautral immunity should show in titers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommyrooch Posted October 22, 2009 Share Posted October 22, 2009 But I don't think this is true. My mom never had chicken pox that she knew of, but also never caught it in spite of being a kindergarten teacher for years. She finally had her titers checked when my kids had it (I didn't want them to be the ones who finally gave it to her), and the titers showed she was immune. Even nautral immunity should show in titers. Absolulely, if anything they would most likely be even higher because usually "natural" immune responses build an even higher level of protection than vaccination because of a heightened immune response. My son got Chicken Pox naturally without vaccination. He had a VERY mild case which included maybe 5 little pox and the sniffles. That was it. We pulled his titers afterwards and they were through the roof! Natural immunity would show up in the titers. If there were none then she for all intents and purposes has no immunity. As mentioned, Chicken Pox as a teen or adult can get pretty ugly. I wouldn't take that chance. With negative titers I would get the vaccine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom-ninja. Posted October 22, 2009 Share Posted October 22, 2009 I wouldn't yet. I know that it can be worse for teens and adults but I haven't seen that happen. I think the risk is still small. I've known a number of teens and adults with chicken pox, and none of them suffered too much. Let's see... my cousin at 12, my friend at 14, another friend at 29, co-worker at 22, father of a child I watched at 42, co-worker at 33, and although they were very covered in pox, they didn't feel too horrible. Perhaps let your dd make the decision? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie in CA Posted October 22, 2009 Share Posted October 22, 2009 I wouldn't yet. I know that it can be worse for teens and adults but I haven't seen that happen. I think the risk is still small. I've known a number of teens and adults with chicken pox, and none of them suffered too much. It wasn't until I was perpetually pregnant for close to 7 years that I even cared. If I remember correctly, varicella can be fairly devastating with pregnancy? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LisaKinVA Posted October 22, 2009 Share Posted October 22, 2009 We decided to go ahead and vaccinate our children... we don't live in an area where there are lots of CPOX parties, if you know what I mean. Vaccination levels are really high (military/government). My husband's twin brothers both contracted CPox as teens and it was (according to them and their mother) awful. FWIW, anecdotal "evidence" as to how bad cpox is as an older child is just that, anecdotal. There are always going to be people who have milder cases or worse cases -- because individual immune systems are different (genetics, environment, etc.). Statistically speaking (looking at a broad range of cases), Cpox does become more dangerous as children age. I'm not sure where the breakpoint is, but 11 is getting pretty close to puberty. Hormonal changes do a lot to the body, and I can only imagine that it can wreak havoc on a pre-teen as badly as an adult. I vote vaccinate both of them. And, if they are naturally immune they will have sufficient Titer levels (we checked for Titers at Ped's response due to my oldest NOT getting cpox after being very well exposed twice... he had decent Titers, but wasn't considered immune). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mom-ninja. Posted October 22, 2009 Share Posted October 22, 2009 Yes, it can cause horrible problems to the fetus. Something to consider for women. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LMA Posted October 22, 2009 Share Posted October 22, 2009 Just keep in mind if your dd wants to volunteer at a hospital or nursing home in the future, she will have to have a titer done and if it negative, she will have to get the vaccine in order to volunteer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carrie12345 Posted October 22, 2009 Share Posted October 22, 2009 I'm naturally immune and thrilled to be so. :D I became an (extreme) select vax'er about 5 years ago, so I have 2 kids who have the shot and two who don't. I do plan to have them each checked around age 13 or so and will vax at that point if they are not immune. I don't like the risks that come with the pox at that age. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AngieW in Texas Posted October 22, 2009 Share Posted October 22, 2009 I had my titer checked when I was exposed at 10wks pregnant. My titer was 0. I didn't get chicken pox and neither did my dd. I had been babysitting for a friend and our girls (almost 2yo) kept drinking out of each other's sippy cups. After that I was determined to get chicken pox for myself and my girls. As soon as my dd weaned (the one I was pregnant with), I started going to pox parties with my girls. I stopped when I got pregnant again and restarted when she weaned. Altogether we went to 7 pox parties. We always took lollipops to share. Other families at the pox parties managed to get at least one of their kids sick with it, but none of us ever showed any signs of it - no fever, no pox, no anything. I finally gave up looking for chicken pox. If it happens, it happens. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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