Why Hepatitis B Vaccine for Newborns?

Published

I never could understand the rationale behind the need for this vaccine for newborns. Don't read this if you want a peer review.

http://www.nccn.net/~wwithin/belkin.pdf

This article states that 66% of infected people in the recent mumps outbread were fully vaccinated and another 14% were partialy vaccinated. If these vaccines are so effected then why are 66% of those infected recently coming down with mumps? We had an outbreak in middle school in 1987 in which several of my completely vaccinated friends got mumps. One had to have a gonad removed do to the fact that it hits this region hard after puberty. So far, no one in the recent outbreak has died and I think the numbers are up to 1,600 and growing. Mumps, like rueblla and chicken pox in a healthy child is an uncomfortable situation that passes. I would rather a mild experience with mumps at the age of 6 than a gonadectomy at the age of 35 because the vaccine wore off. Indigo Girl: Keep Questioning!!!

Things mutate, Josifk. And perhaps the cases were not as severe as they would have been sans vaccine. Maybe that's why no one has died in the current outbreaks.

I remember the pre-MMR days and knew children who were either left deaf or sterile from mumps.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
This article states that 66% of infected people in the recent mumps outbread were fully vaccinated and another 14% were partialy vaccinated. If these vaccines are so effected then why are 66% of those infected recently coming down with mumps? We had an outbreak in middle school in 1987 in which several of my completely vaccinated friends got mumps. One had to have a gonad removed do to the fact that it hits this region hard after puberty. So far, no one in the recent outbreak has died and I think the numbers are up to 1,600 and growing. Mumps, like rueblla and chicken pox in a healthy child is an uncomfortable situation that passes. I would rather a mild experience with mumps at the age of 6 than a gonadectomy at the age of 35 because the vaccine wore off. Indigo Girl: Keep Questioning!!!

Roughly 10% of people who receive two vaccinations will not seroconvert. I'm not much of a gambler, but I'm going to go ahead and place my money on the 90% that will.

Amanda

Up Vote Up Vote ×
I remember the pre-MMR days and knew children who were either left deaf or sterile from mumps.

And of course, we don't know if any of these kids will be sterile from their infections. Six hundred cases in Iowa alone, this year compared to an average in the US of ~260 a year - one can only wonder how many cases there would be if there weren't vaccinations.

Amanda

Up Vote Up Vote ×

Here's some interesting epidemiological stuff on mumps from the World Health Organization. I don't think the UN's public health folks are making a fortune trying to eradicate, you know, plagues and stuff.

http://www.who.int/vaccines/en/mumps.shtml

Up Vote Up Vote ×
My discussions about these issues are on these forums only. "Feeding into parents natural fears about vaccination" would not happen from over here.

All posts at allnurses is easily accessable to the general public by way of several search engines.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Too many to list.
All posts at allnurses is easily accessable to the general public by way of several search engines.

I'm sure that could happen. I don't want to misunderstand your inference but, are you implying that we should be censoring our discussions due to that possibility? With all due respect, as I am sure you are aware, the general public can find many websites, and newsletters from other healthcare professionals including physicians, who question some of these issues also.

Up Vote Up Vote ×

Here are some of the reasons why Hep B vaccines are started in newborns:

1. The Center for Disease Control recommends it as well as the American Academy of Pediatrics. That is good enough for me.

2. Pediatricians don't want children falling by the wayside in the vaccine dept so they give them as early as possible to help ensure they get the full set. Some parents aren't all that great about getting all of the vaccines their children need. In a practice where I worked 60-70% of patients were behind in vaccines despite our efforts of tracking them down and reminding them.

3. ANY child from what ever age can have contact with blood and therefore develop Hep. B- other bites from children, sports, intercourse, physical or sexual abuse (Even if you are a parent who "would never put their child in any of these types of situations," this stuff can still happen.)

P.S. I had an 8 yo female pt who I Dx with Hep B. Know how she got it? She was sexually abused by an infected peer at school (same age). HE had been sexually abused by infected family member. Her mother felt SUCH guilt about this, as she had previously refused the vaccine for her daughter "until she is a teenager." Because "She isn't going to have sex at 8!"

Yes, there isn't much difference between waiting from birth until 2 mos. But waiting until teen age years just doesn't make sense to me. Why even take the chance? It is a serious disease!

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Adolescent Psych, PICU.

P.S. I had an 8 yo female pt who I Dx with Hep B. Know how she got it? She was sexually abused by an infected peer at school (same age). HE had been sexually abused by infected family member.

This is a great discussion IMO.

Despite my previous comments in this thread about the Hep B vaccine and my feelings about vax'ing newborns with it the above experience IS an issue for so many children unfortunatly. Out of the 3 women in my family (me, my mom, and my sister) every one of us was sexually abused at some point.

If a child is exposed to HepB they are much more likely to become carriers than adults and that puts them at risk for liver cancer because they carried the disease for so long (I'm thinking on the CDC site 95% of adults who contract HepB recover--not that I want it...). So IMO it's a much more serious disease for children than it is for adults.

I'm still not completely sure about my stance on vaccines but I think it is wise to question each and every one and decide which ones are best for your child, who is the one taking the risk for vaccine reaction or the disease. It's not as easy choice is it?

Here is my problem with Hep B specifically, reports from medical journals like this:

Lancet 1991 Nov 9;338(8776):1174-5

"2 patients had neurological symptoms and signs, with evidence of

central-nervous-system demyelination, 6 weeks after administration of

recombinant hepatitis B vaccine."

AJNR Am J Neuroradiol 1995 Mar;16(3):581-2

'We describe a case of acute transverse myelitis after the administration of

the recombinant form of hepatitis B vaccine. Abnormal enhancement of MR

imaging accompanied residual neurologic deficit."

J Korean Med Sci 1997 Jun;12(3):249-51

We report a case of myelitis after plasma-derived hepatitis B vaccination.

The patient was a 31-year-old man who presented with progressive sensory

symptoms in extremities that developed 2 weeks after a third vaccination.

MRI of the cervicothoracic region revealed swelling and T2 high signal at

the level of C4 to C5 cord, and isolated enhancement in the posterior

columns between C4 and C5 cord.

10534549 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE] 1: Scand J Rheumatol 1995;24(1):50-2 Arthritis after hepatitis B vaccination. Report of three cases. Gross K, Combe C, Kruger K, Schattenkirchner M. Rheumatology Unit, LM University of Munich, Germany. Side effects of hepatitis vaccination are rare. Only a few cases of arthritis after hepatitis vaccination have been published. We report on three cases of vaccination-induced arthritis with different resulting disease. Two cases show the pattern of reactive arthritis. None of them was associated with HLA-B27. In the third case onset of rheumatoid arthritis was triggered by hepatitis vaccination. These three cases show that arthritis after hepatitis B vaccination probably is more common than reported so far, especially in a genetically predisposed subject

What my concerns are is how many children, since most receive this vax at birth, develop myelitis, and it goes on record as a birth defect of some sort and not a vax reaction--who would even think it to be or know it is a vax reaction--probably no one. I don't know, I guess that is what my question/worry would be. I post this and my thoughts to kinda bounce ideas, etc off you all. How small are the risk of the HepB vaccine for anybody? I have no clue. But like anything there is risks that is for sure. We all have to choose what we think is in our best interest.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Adolescent Psych, PICU.

Thanks for the link, I thought lady jezebels post was very good--it gave me some things to think about. We don't always think of babies sharing body fluids but they sure as heck do don't they?! LOL At least I didn't think about it that way....I tend to think about blood and sex and drug use.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Adolescent Psych, PICU.

Speaking of HepB this is a tad OT but does anyone have any links or references to show the incidence of HepB among health care works before and after the vaccine?

That is something I would personally like to see and haven't been able to find but I know has to be out there somewhere.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in Obstetrics, mother/baby.

I have noticed trends in general that parents are afraid and declining to vaccine their children.......beginning with the Hep B vaccine in the nb nrsy.

Up Vote Up Vote ×
Specializes in med/surg, psych, public health.
I never could understand the rationale behind the need for this vaccine for newborns. Don't read this if you want a peer review.

http://www.nccn.net/~wwithin/belkin.pdf

Great article, thanks for posting it!

Other than for high-risk babies, I too have never understood the rationale behind Hep B shot for newborns & usually within 1 hr. of birth!

A lot of postpartum moms are telling our nurses that they were made to feel guilty (bad parent) if they questioned why or wanted to refuse the shot.

Another thing that boggles my mind (and I've read a vast amount of material on), is the number of bad reactions that ARE NOT REPORTED TO VAERS DATABASE!!

There's been a few bad ones happen where I work that went unreported...makes a person wonder :redlight:

Up Vote Up Vote ×
+ Join the Discussion