[jenniferw223]

I just called my sons Pediatrician to get new forms for daycare. This is his third Ped and honestly I do not really like her and was actually planning to switch him again as soon as I can. He has been seeing her for a few months because we moved. Well the nurse called me today to say he has his chicken pox vaccine and MMR shots before he was a year old so they will all need to be repeated. Now he had the first MMR does in Guatemala and the remaining here in the US (I think). Aren't the MMR shorts the ones that can cause autism? I am going to get a second opinion, but would you repeat the shots? What would you do? Thank you for your thoughts.

[hml1976]

There is zero medical proof that any shot causes autism.

However, have you doctor run titers to see if the shots were effective, no need to vaccinate twice if they worked.

[Claudia214]

My dd's ped also made us repeat vaccines when we got her home due to the fact that she said her shots were not given at the appropriate intervals. Anyway, she is almost two and we are finally up to date and caught back up with her shots - we never had any problems and she is healthy

JMO - I would rather have them re-done than risk her contracting a virus that could have been prevented from a shot - or from her puting other children at risk for not having shots

[mamir]

My son's ped. said the same thing when he came home from Guatemala. I made them run a titers test first to determine if the vaccine was good or not. Turns out the vaccine he supposedly received too early in Guatemala was perfectly fine. I'm so glad I had the titers run first before letting them re-vaccinate.

[SKL]

I'd do titers before I'd revaccinate with the MMR. The MMR has risks other than autism.

How much before age 1 was the shot done? If it wasn't long before, I find it hard to believe it could truly be ineffective; if that were the case, they wouldn't recommend that all kids get the shot at exactly 1. I also wonder if the restriction to not get the MMR before age 1 is really more about risks of the shot rather than effectiveness. For example, the shot is not to be given to anyone with an egg allergy, yet pediatricians advise us not to give our kids eggs prior to age 1, so it's obvious that the MMR shouldn't be given before that either. The CDC isn't as open as it could be about the risks of vaccinations; and considering that, I would be extremely hesitant about re-vaccinating my child because a prior vaccination was given early.

[Disneycrazed]

Malea's had all of hers done over also when she came home(7 months). They started them all over they spread them out just as if they were starting from the beginning. We had no issues.

[DPline]

I would insist on having titers done. I am a firm believer in vaccinations, but I also would not repeat them without determining whether it is truely necessary.

[w8ting4Thomas]

Dpline - my thoughts EXACTLY

[avoel]

I am a pediatrician. There are many, many studies out there to show that live virus vaccines like the MMR and Chicken pox are simply not as effective when given to children too young (babies immune systems are not equipped to handle such vaccines). There may be some protection which is why often some countries will give them, especially in the event of an outbreak, but they do need to be repeated after a certain age to insure full protection. The result of these studies has been the development of state laws governing when shots should have been received. So, if your child has an MMR documented before the first birthday, and you want that child to attend public school or licensed daycare at some point, chances are someone is going to look at the shot record and reject it for not having appropriate vaccinations. This is not a case of physicians not accepting vaccinations because they were given on time but in a third world country (in which case I fully support titers before ever repeating a vaccine) but of a vaccine being given improperly. In general, vaccines may be given late, and you never have to start a series over if you are late on one of the doses, but never give a vaccine too early!

[DPline]

So even if titers were done and immunity was shown the child would still need to have the vaccine repeated because of it not being origionally given within the US age guidelines? And even though it was the first in the series and the other ones were given at the appropriate time?

In this particular situation the OP is describing, would one additional MMR be given? One now and then the one administered between ages 4-6 done later? From her timeline, he seems to be almost 4 years old, so he would be about ready for the second one.

We had titers done when my kids came home (at 11 months and 20 months) and did have to repeat some vaccinations because the previous one had not been effective, but the date they were given never came up.



Not disagreeing with you. I totally respect your knowledge. I am just really curious about this.

[mommytoEli]

eli had to have his 6 month shots repeated at 10 months bc on his shot record it appeared as though he got his 3 month and 6 month shots on the same day....at 3months old. he was fine.

ds5's doctor wanted him to have a mmr shot before he travelled to guatemala at 3. he got it, but then they wouldn't let him into school without an mmr after age 4. so he got it again. he was fine too.

i struggled alot about what to do, and in the end i went for it. it was not a popular choice. but i felt it was right at the time.

[dspakowsky]

Originally Posted by mamir

My son's ped. said the same thing when he came home from Guatemala. I made them run a titers test first to determine if the vaccine was good or not. Turns out the vaccine he supposedly received too early in Guatemala was perfectly fine. I'm so glad I had the titers run first before letting them re-vaccinate.

Yes - do titers. There does seem to be a correlation with vaccines and autisim. That's a heated debate, but why risk it???

[JGarrick]

Originally Posted by dspakowsky

Yes - do titers. There does seem to be a correlation with vaccines and autisim. That's a heated debate, but why risk it???

I'd agree, do titers. However, correlation does not equal causation. You risk it because the risk of getting the disease the vaccine prevents is greater than the risk of a perceived but unproven threat from the vaccine itself.

As others have noted, you might also get it because they'll be required to get it anyway if they go to day care or school.

[avoel]

Yes, even if the titers are fine, say in a 5 year old who had one MMR at 10 months and one at 4 year, I would give a 3rd MMR to be within CDC guidelines because, even though young children may have a bump in titers they may not be high enough to give life long protection if the shots are not given properly. So , just for example, the 5 year old who was improperly vaccinated may have a titer of 10 while the properly vaccinated child may have a titer of 50. Both technically have normal titers when the lab reports anything above 5 as normal because not just infants get titers checked...adults do too and their levels are much lower. But since immunity wanes over time, the properly vaccinated child is far more protected than the improperly vaccinated one. The child who starts at 50 might be at 10 when he is 60 and still immune...but where will the child who starts at 10 be?

In all honesty the practice of providing so many booster shots for kids does protect against this to a large degree, and this is why there is now a recommendation for a second MMR (and a second chickenpox vaccine). It is also the reason the pertussis component was added back into the adult tetanus shot. Immunity does decrease over time, so you want to make sure your kids start with as high a level as possible when they are little, because we all know they are going to grow up and live very long and healthy lives!

But really it is the harrassment from every daycare, school and college that really convinces most parents to repeat the immunization...they really don't leave you alone!

[DPline]

Thanks Amy! Seeing the titer numbers makes it make a lot more sense to me.

I really appreciate the explanation!