DTap Vaccination

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For your information. Do your own research. There have been 9 deaths a

year 9approx) from PErtussis. Balance that against other risks to make a

decision. The reason we chose not to immunize Elie against Pertussis was

due to WHOLE CELL P being given. I will revisit this subject withour doc as

to the acellular vaccine. I do believe in vaccination - with caution- .

Elie has had everything available EXCEPT the P.

Vaccines

[edit<http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Pertussis & action=edit & section=6>

] History of pertussis vaccine development

Infection with pertussis induces immunity, but not lasting protective

immunity, and a second attack is

possible.[4]<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pertussis#cite_note-3>Efforts

to develop an inactivated whole-cell pertussis

vaccine <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vaccine> began soon after *B.

pertussis* was grown in pure culture in 1906. In the 1920s Dr. Louis Sauer

developed a vaccine for whooping cough at ton Hospital (Chicago, IL).

In 1925, the Danish physician Thorvald

Madsen<http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Thorvald_Madsen & action=edit & red\

link=1>was

the first to test a whole-cell pertussis vaccine on a wide scale.

[5] <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pertussis#cite_note-Baker_2004-4> He used

the vaccine to control outbreaks in the Faroe Islands in the North Sea. In

1942, the American scientist Pearl

Kendrick<http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Pearl_Kendrick & action=edit & re\

dlink=1>combined

the whole-cell pertussis vaccine with

diphtheria <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diphtheria> and

tetanus<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tetanus>toxoids to generate the

first DTP combination vaccine. To minimize the

frequent side effects caused by the pertussis component of the vaccine, the

Japanese scientist Yuji

Sato<http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Yuji_Sato & action=edit & redlink=1>d\

eveloped

an acellular pertussis vaccine consisting of purified

haemagglutinins (HAs: filamentous HA and leucocytosis-promoting-factor HA),

which are secreted by *B. pertussis* into the culture medium. Sato's

acellular pertussis vaccine was used in Japan since the autumn of

1981.[6]<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pertussis#cite_note-Sato_1984-5>Later

versions of the acellular pertussis vaccine used in other countries

consisted of additional defined components of *B. pertussis* and were often

part of the DTaP <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DTaP> combination vaccine.

[edit<http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Pertussis & action=edit & section=7>

] Current status of pertussis vaccines

Pertussis vaccines are highly effective, strongly recommended, and save many

infant lives every year. Though the protection they offer lasts only a few

years, they are given so that immunity lasts through childhood, the time of

greatest exposure and greatest

risk.[7]<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pertussis#cite_note-6>The

immunizations <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Immunization_(medicine)> are

given in combination with tetanus <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tetanus>,

diphtheria <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diphtheria>, polio and haemophilus

influenzae type B immunizations, at ages 2, 3, and 4 months, and a later

booster at 3 years and 4 months or soon after (

http://www.immunisation.nhs.uk/).

The short term effectiveness of the vaccines and the presence of *B.

pertussis* infection in adults and adolescents who may transmit the bacteria

to infants have caused many in the medical field to call for booster

immunizations at later ages. Although Canada, France, the U.S. and Germany

now have approved booster shots for adolescents, adults, or both, other

countries adhere to the tradition of discontinuing pertussis vaccination

after the age of seven, from concerns that there are side effects associated

with the first available " whole-cell " pertussis immunizations that tended to

increase with age.[*citation

needed<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed>

*] The whole-cell vaccine is still used in poor countries, since it is

cheaper than the newer and safer acellular formulation.

As the immunity from infection or vaccination lasts only a few years, the

discontinuation of booster vaccination in older persons caused the emergence

of a large pool of older persons lacking immunity, followed by an increase

of adult-onset pertussis that accelerated beginning in about

2004.[8]<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pertussis#cite_note-7>This

burgeoning outbreak is predicted to increasingly infect adults and

adolescents with debilitating cases, but poses even more serious public

health dangers to newborns. As adolescent and adult cases surge, newborns

are again at risk of exposure to pertussis circulating in adolescents or

adults in the community before the infants' vaccinations can be completed.

The decision to resume vaccinating teens and adults reflects in part that

the newer acellular vaccine, known as DTaP, has greatly reduced the

incidence of adverse effects observed with the earlier " whole-cell "

pertussis vaccine. An acellular vaccine preparation for adults and

adolescents has been approved in Canada<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canada>,

Europe, and the United States <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States>.

In the U.S., the Food and Drug

Administration<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_and_Drug_Administration>has

authorized both the use of the vaccines Boostrix (

GlaxoKline <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GlaxoKline>) for 10-18

year olds in May 2005 and Adacel (Sanofi

Pasteur<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanofi_Pasteur>)

for 11-64 year olds in August

2005.[9]<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pertussis#cite_note-8>These

vaccines are recommended for all teens and adults within the indicated

age ranges, except for those with a history of adverse reaction to the

whole-cell pertussis vaccines. The most serious side-effects of traditional

" whole-cell " pertussis immunizations were

neurological<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neurology>:

and included seizures <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seizure> and

hypotonic<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tonicity#Hypotonicity>episodes.

[edit<http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Pertussis & action=edit & section=8>

] Whole-cell pertussis vaccine controversy

Much of the controversy surrounding the DTP vaccine in the 1970s and 1980s

related to the question of whether the whole-cell pertussis component caused

permanent brain injury in rare cases. Although it was well-established that

the pertussis component of the DTP vaccine accounted for most of the minor

local and systemic side effects in many vaccinated infants, several

published studies failed to show a causal relationship between

administration of the DTP vaccine and permanent brain injury. However,

criticism of these studies and well-publicized anecdotal reports of

DTP-induced permanent disability and death gave rise to anti-DTP movements.[

10] <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pertussis#cite_note-Geier_2002-9> In

addition, a number of children suffered allergic reactions to the pertussis

vaccination, including severe seizures. Despite this, doctors recommended

the vaccine, and even threatened to report parents who refused to vaccinate

their children[*citation

needed<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed>

*].

By the late 1970s, publicity about adverse reactions and deaths following

pertussis vaccination caused the immunization rate to fall in several

countries, including Great Britain, Sweden, and Japan. In many cases, a

dramatic increase in the incidence of pertussis

followed.[11]<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pertussis#cite_note-Gangarosa_1998-10\

>These

developments led Yuji Sato to introduce a safer acellular version of

the pertussis vaccine for Japan in 1981. Nevertheless, other countries

continued to use the whole-cell DTP formulation.

In the United States, low profit margins and an increase in vaccine-related

lawsuits led many manufacturers to stop producing the DTP vaccine by the

early 1980s.[*citation

needed<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Citation_needed>

*] In 1982, the television documentary " DTP: Vaccine Roulette " depicted the

lives of children whose severe disabilities were blamed on the DTP vaccine.

The negative publicity generated by the documentary led to a tremendous

increase in the number of lawsuits filed against vaccine

manufacturers.[12]<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pertussis#cite_note-_2006-1\

1>By

1985, manufacturers of vaccines had difficulty obtaining liability

insurance. The price of the DTP vaccine skyrocketed, leading to shortages

around the country. Only one manufacturer of the DPT vaccine remained in the

U.S. by the end of 1985. To avert a vaccine crisis, Congress in 1986 passed

the National Childhood Vaccine Injury

Act<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Childhood_Vaccine_Injury_Act>(NCVIA),

which established a federal no-fault system to compensate victims

of injury caused by mandated

vaccines.[13]<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pertussis#cite_note-_1988-12>Sin\

ce

then, the prices of vaccines have stabilized, and the number of

lawsuits filed against DTP manufacturers has dwindled. The majority of

claims that have been filed through the NCVIA have been related to injuries

allegedly caused by the whole-cell DTP vaccine. The acellular pertussis

vaccine was approved in the United States in 1992 for use in the combination

DTaP vaccine. Research has shown the acellular vaccine to be safe, with few

reports of adverse

effects.[14]<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pertussis#cite_note-pmid15933223-13>Al\

though

the whole-cell DTP vaccine is no longer used in the United States,

it is still purchased by the World Health

Organization<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Health_Organization>and

distributed to developing nations because of its much reduced cost

compared to the acellular DTaP <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DTaP> vaccine.

--

Sara - Life is a journey- we choose the path.