Mumps and chickenpox used to be part of the normal childhood experience ... one, in fact, that had moms scanning the neighborhood trying to find another kid that had it in order to get their kids infected, over with it, and to assure that they wouldn't get it later in life when it can be dangerous.

I had mumps in early elementary school, and unfortunately never got exposed to chicken pox until I was in high school ... had a reasonably mild case, luckily.

I did get vaccinated for Measles and German Measles.

As part of my employment I had to get the Hep-B RNA Vaccine.

so i was thinking about the math here....and of the 4,000,000 cases reported each year, 5% being 20+ yr old patiens represent 200,000 cases. if 55% of the 100 annual chpx deaths is 55 deaths among 20+ yr olds, that means that if you get it after 20 yrs old, you have a .000275 chance of dying from it

if you are in the other age group, (3,8000,000 cases reported) and 45 deaths among them, you have a .0000118421 chance of dying from it.

.000275 vs. .0000118421 chance of dying from varicella
over 20 v. under 20 yrs old

the vaccine is only 85% effective, and although it's supposed to last 20 years, they've only been doing it for 9, so who knows how long it will REALLY last.

the moral?

make sure your kid gets chicken pox as a child....just like our parents did for us.

i don't know. didn't you see what happened when the parents on south park pulled that one on their kids. time to hide the toothbrush if you do.

Now add this to the equation - actually getting chickenpox confers lifelong immunity. That natural immunity can protect a growing fetus or a nursing infant. The vaccine can not.
Women around my age are in this position now with rubella, a perfectly harmless illness if we would have contracted it as children, possibly devestaing to a fetus if we are exposed during pregnancy because the vaccination has worn off.

We decided to do it. Everybody else got the chicken pox vaccine, so our kids wouldn't be exposed. A real problem I have with it is that it could push out the time when folks might catch chicken pox into a more dangerous period of life. We really don't know the impact of this program other than drug makers cashing in. It pisses me off that I rolled over on this one when my doctor couldn't give me a good reason other than my kids were not going to be exposed.

I asked somebody knowlegable about the autism / vaccination connection. He said there was a pretty good study debunking that one. I'll have to look for it. The problem is that onset of autistic symtoms tends to happen in the same timeframe as early childhood vaccinations. We naturally see causation.

Yikes. Guess I'm fucked because I never had it. :eek:

Mercury Linked to Autism-Like Damage in Mice

Institute of Medicine Says Study Does Not Support Link Between Mercury, Autism in Humans

http://my.webmd.com/content/Article/88/99936.htm

do you have ANY idea what you're talking about?!
 

Listen, buddy. I may be seventeen years old, but I had a son when I was fifteen. He died at the age of five months, and no matter how many investigations were conducted, nobody could find any reason why he died. He hadn't had his immunizations, but he wasn't sick or infected with anything. He had nothing wrong with his breathing or his little heart. He slept in a safe environment. So next time you want to dis something that has torn people apart inside without going through it yourself, think first. It's extremely painful not knowing why my son died.

Welcome to the Cellar, thou_shall_not_fall. :D

I have to assume you're responding to lumberjim's original post, since you didn't specify. I suggest you go back and read it again. The only thing he's "dissing", is the habit of the medical profession of labeling children's deaths as SIDS, without investigating all possible causes.

SIDS has been around a long time. It is still a poorly understood condition. But there are some things known about it. This is an example of some of the most recent research. Smart people are still trying to understand it but alas they will have to keep trying.

http://search.medscape.com/all-search?queryText=SIDS

we're not buddies. sorry about your kid, Mike.

Well I lost my 9/11 to SIDS. You insensitive cock.

Merc, that poor noob is never going to get that.

Thou/fall, that was an in-joke. Don't mind him.

True Dat. Given I've worked in health care for over 30 years most people wouldn't even get it unless you did. We find humor in human tragedy everyday. You have to do so to maintain your sanity.

There is new research suggesting that SIDS is caused by rebreathing the same air, so researchers suggest that having a fan turned on in the room where the child is sleeping in order to create airflow may help.

SIDS deaths have decreased remarkably since the mid 80's although still no one really knows exactly what causes a child to die for no apparent reason.

About the chicken pox vaccination. My kids weren't vaccinated against it purely because it wasn't available here in Australia at the time they were born. They did both contract chickenpox...TWICE...so I don't agree and have positive proof that simply contracting an illness like chickenpox is enough to save you from having it ever again.

My kids are immunized against everything else though. I think it's irresponsible not to immunize.