I’m 35 and have pertussis. My mom freaked out when I told her. She insisted that I’d been vaccinated when I was little. None of my friends, coworkers, or family new that the vaccine “wears off.”

I honestly wouldn’t wish this on my worst enemy. Please please please get boosters. It sure beats the sore throat, headaches, strained tongue (yeah…it really hurts), bruised ribs, and time missed at work.

“Who really wants to risk their child picking up a highly-contagious illness that can result in ear infections, pneumonia, seizures/convulsions, brain damage (from oxygen deprivation),etc”

Not me! I don’t really want these either!

* Rash, hives or severe itching
* Swelling, redness and pain at the injection site
* High fever over 103F
* Difficulty breathing or wheezing
* Rapid heart beat or chest pain
* Dizziness or sudden collapse/fainting
* Paleness or changes in skin or lip color
* Muscle weakness or limpness
* Excessive sleepiness or lack of responsiveness
* Loss of vision or speech
* Nausea and vomiting
* Severe diarrhea
* Unusual irritability or other behavior changes
* Prolonged crying (especially high-pitched screaming in infants)
* Seizures or convulsions (shaking, twitching, jerking)
* Joint and body pain
* Head pain
* Excessive bruising under the skin
* Numbness or tingling in hands, arms, feet
* Paralysis
(documented possible adverse reactions to vaccines)

I have another point of view: just this past fall, I caught whooping cough because I work with medically fragile children who are unable to receive a pertussis vaccine. It SUCKS. The majority of staff members did not know that adults need a booster shot, and 3 other teachers and I were forced to miss 5 days of work (that’s how long you’re contagious), and my husband had to wear a surgical mask just to sleep next to me. The health department ordered me to stay home or be arrested, and my parents, siblings and friends who’d spent a lot of time with me ALL had to go on a Z-Pak. I thought I was going to crack a rib or suffocate every time I coughed. I could sleep for about an hour at a time before waking up with a massive coughing fit.

I totally understand why those students at my school didn’t get vaccinated against it. Most of them are on seizure meds that have potentially life-threatening interactions with a Tdap. But if I taught at a regular school, and caught it from a kindergartner whose parents made a choice to skip vaccines, do you know how PISSED I’d have been? If I had gotten pregnant a month earlier, how terrified I’d be? How worried the other women at work with newborns were scared they could still bring it home and infect their babies? I wish more people would consider the fact that vaccines don’t only protect their own children, they protect other children and adults as well.

So what if the actual kill rate from pertussis is low? Who really wants to risk their child picking up a highly-contagious illness that can result in ear infections, pneumonia, seizures/convulsions, brain damage (from oxygen deprivation), retinal damage and hernias (from the severe coughing spells)? And even if your own child’s illness is mild, why would you want to risk them passing it on to someone else who may develop a severe case?

Thanks Dr.M and CV for your contributions.

Are vaccines necessary? Are they safe? Sources from the internet, TV, radio and the newspaper abound with information about vaccines. It is more interesting to present a story that questions the validity of giving vaccines than to support something which, if successful, nothing happens. The media has given a voice to a vocal group that has raised concerns about vaccines for almost as long as the success of vaccines have been evident. These are folks who are against all vaccines, no matter what the evidence shows. They feel that vaccines are a poison and that the

Are cases declining? According to the cdc there were 10,454 cases reported in 2007 and 10 deaths. That is a .095% chance of dying if getting a diagnosable case, in 2007. Or in more happy terms…a 99.905 chance you would be just fine AND end up with lifelong immunity. And it is well known that there are even more cases that are mild and left undetected or diagnosed so that % is actually even higher. The author said there was over 25,000 cases in 2005. She didn’t tell you that 2005 was the height of the most recent epidemic that occurs every 3-5 years and that most of the increase was in adolescents and adults who’s immunity had waned due to the wearing off of the vaccine(according to the cdc). Pertussis is no fun, I agree. But scare tactics just aren’t science.

So 11% had parents that opted out of the vaccine. Does that include for religious purposes? (Hey, its a legit question, I am assuming this is the case)

The remaining 89%…what percent weren’t old enough to have had the full course of the vaccine (i.e. under around age 2)? Feeling too lazy to do much research myself right now, but it seems like that has been a quoted statistic in other similar stories about resurgent “formerly gone vaccinated against diseases” such as the measles. Also wondering whether some kids fell into “gaps” where they either didn’t complete the series or some dosing information changed mid-series. (A whole batch of children my age – as in four years worth at one practice in town, had to be revacc’d for MMR for a reason similar to this….something changed, doses weren’t given at the correct age, whatever it was. That’s a lot of children. It was discovered when we had a small outbreak of measles…)

Yes, pertussis can kill infants. But with the current recommendations for a vaccination schedule, babies are not fully vaccinated against pertussis until they’re over two – and well past the most worrisome age to get pertussis. It’s frustrating to not have a vaccine to protect your child when they are most vulnerable, but that’s the reality of the situation. And while I’m not a non-vaxer, this article misses one point I think is interesting. Any disease can be life-threatening depending on the course and the person’s immune system. But allowing one’s body to get some diseases actually helps build the immune system – vaccinating does not allow for that, even the live vaccines. And as this article states, adults age out of their vax immunity. Contracting pertussis builds natural, life-long immunity against it in the future. So I can at least understand where non-vaxers are coming from on this issue.

I find it interesting that it doesn’t tell you how many kids who were already vaccinated got the disease. 11% opted out by parental decision. In my experience very, very, very few every get medical exemption so I would have to say the majority of the children who got pertussis were vaccinated anyway? Would just be interesting to know. And at least now we can’t just blame the unvaccinated for skrewing up herd immunity…looks like most adults (vaccinated as children) are doing it too.