[Whirled_Peas]

I spoke to our pediatrician about the vaccine today. She said the injection only lasts for about 6 months or a year and the mist about a year. Since this appears to be a year round flu that would mean that in 6 months you need to do it all over again.

She said, "We've been seeing it all summer. It's been really mild. There have been deaths so we have to recommend the vaccine."

[Stormster]

Where did she get her info?

[Amber76]

ALL flu shots, seasonal and H1N1 are only meant to last for 1 year. You have to get a new seasonal flu shot each year, so it would stand to reason that you'd need a new H1N1 as well since it is developed the exact same way. As for the 6 months thing, I haven't heard that anywhere else. Do you know where your pediatrician heard that?

[Whirled_Peas]

I don't know where she got the info.

I've been on the fence about whether to give the shot or not. With this new info I'm leaning towards not. It's my pediatrician's opinion that we will eventually all get this flu. Since it seems to be year round it seems impractical to be giving injections every 6 months. I know I don't want my kids to get that many shots.

An argument could be made to give them the shots until they are a bit older. I will consider that argument.

[Stormster]

E had the mist and it was no big deal at all (he asked for another one! but he's a little "weird" that way) and no symptoms at all, this is the third day. I would STILL rather do it every six months than risk a hospitalization or worse. But I thought this was a one time thing. I thought we get new flu shots every year because the TYPE of flu is different every year. I was under the impression that H1N1 is one kind of flu and E would be immunized permanently or at least for a while.

I just assumed this, nobody told me. Will look into it!

[peregrinerose]

Just an FYI... there's a recent devastating ocular side effect that has popped up with the nasal form of the vaccine. If you've had recent refractive surgery or corneal transplant, think very hard about getting the vaccine (especially nasal form), and if you are considering refractive surgery, wait until after flu season to do it if you're getting the vaccine. The information is below.

Jen


Since concerns of H1N1 have become widespread across the US, many have rushed to obtain the H1N1 vaccine. While the adverse effects of this vaccine are relatively mild, they can have ophthalmic consequences. The following case demonstrates one such occurrence:

A 25 year old female with history of bilateral corneal transplants for keratoconus (OD in 2009, OS in 2004) received the live attenuated H1N1 vaccine intranasally. The following morning she awoke with bilateral corneal rejection OD more severe than OS. While the left eye has responded well to topical steroid drops, the right remains edematous despite injecting both sub-tenons with triamcinolone and oral prednisone.

Corneal transplant rejection following vaccination has been described previously with influenza vaccine1,2,3, however in these cases the time from vaccination to rejection has ranged from two to eight weeks. The fast onset of corneal transplant rejection in this patient may likely be related to the close proximity of the inoculation site (nares) to the eye. However, this may also represent a more robust immune reaction to a relatively new and understood vaccine.

Where does this matter in refractive surgery? Increased immune response, and therefore inflammation, can be associated with regression, diffuse lamellar keratitis, transient light sensitivity, and, in severe cases, corneal melting.

As the H1N1 vaccine becomes more available, our patients will be more likely to obtain it, particularly without alerting their ophthalmologist. In discussing laser refractive surgery with our patients in these upcoming months, we must take care to warn our patients about receiving the H1N1 vaccine prior to refractive surgery. If the vaccine is administered to the patient around the time of refractive surgery, we may want to consider a more frequent and prolonged course of topical steroid therapy.

[crick]

Storm - let us know what your sister says about all this. Always good to have all sides of info!

We still have very few vac clinics and they run out in a flash, so haven't been able to even get close to it. I did make my dh get a seasonal flu shot though as he takes the bus to work and then is a computer guy so he touches every single computer in the office.

[BlessedbySnuggs]

Just wanted to pop in and say that M just got her first nasal mist vaccine for H1N1, and our pediatrician says he has seen about 500-600 cases since around May. He also stated that yes you hear about the deaths, and it is very serious, but there has been MANY that you don't hear about that end up in the ICU with serious complications from the flu and H1N1. He just had one patient that was 2 years old that was in the ICU for three weeks and they weren't sure if he was going to make it. Very scary stuff...

On another note, my friend's nephew (6 years old) died from H1N1 last week (he did have other medical issues)....very, very sad. They were waiting for the vaccine to arrive and it was too late.

[Cjmeck]

I agree that the recommendations are probably coming from the CDC's policy to "cover their a$$". And yes, there is a ton of media hype and fear inducing panic. But I just couldn't risk not vaccinating my kids just incase these people aren't overreacting. How could I live with myself if I could have prevented this in my kids and I chose not to? I really, really hate vaccinating my kids (my pets too). And I do realize that the majority of people do seem to have a mild illness with h1n1. BUT I've been on the short end of the odds far too often, and someone has to be in that small percentage. I've already buried one child from a VERY rare birth defect and so I don't feel a sense of safety by the small odds of h1n1 being fatal. Both of my kids, and my husband and I got the h1n1 (DD got the shot, the rest of us got the mist--absolutely no side effects whatsoever).

[Stormster]

Originally Posted by Cjmeck

I agree that the recommendations are probably coming from the CDC's policy to "cover their a$$". And yes, there is a ton of media hype and fear inducing panic. But I just couldn't risk not vaccinating my kids just incase these people aren't overreacting. How could I live with myself if I could have prevented this in my kids and I chose not to? I really, really hate vaccinating my kids (my pets too). And I do realize that the majority of people do seem to have a mild illness with h1n1. BUT I've been on the short end of the odds far too often, and someone has to be in that small percentage. I've already buried one child from a VERY rare birth defect and so I don't feel a sense of safety by the small odds of h1n1 being fatal. Both of my kids, and my husband and I got the h1n1 (DD got the shot, the rest of us got the mist--absolutely no side effects whatsoever).

I so hear everything you said ALL OF IT. I"m sorry, I didn't know you lost a child.

[Stormster]

Originally Posted by crick

Storm - let us know what your sister says about all this. Always good to have all sides of info!

We still have very few vac clinics and they run out in a flash, so haven't been able to even get close to it. I did make my dh get a seasonal flu shot though as he takes the bus to work and then is a computer guy so he touches every single computer in the office.

Will do, sending her an email now (doesn't mean i'll get a quick answer though)

[Cjmeck]

Originally Posted by Stormster

I so hear everything you said ALL OF IT. I"m sorry, I didn't know you lost a child.

Thanks... Losing my first daughter was life changing and perhaps I'm more cynical. I'm just no longer comforted by percentages and odds; those mean nothing to me. I keep hearing people say, well, MOST kids are just fine and have a mild form. Okay, how do you know YOUR child won't be that 1 in a million? (or whatever the odds may be) But I also have 2 friends with kids with autism who do not vaccinate; so I can definitely see the other side of the coin. I'll be interested in what you find out from your sister.

[Whirled_Peas]

I think there's a risk in vaccinating and I think there's a risk in not vaccinating. We have to decide which risk is less scary for us and go with that one. For me there's no easy answer.

[Stormster]

Ok this is what my sister said and I quote:

"No one knows, but it will be contained in next year's seasonal vaccine, so we'll all be getting a boost."