To Vaccinate Or Not...Tis the Question

*WARNING: GRAPHIC*

We had a lecture on vaccination today. Perhaps when I have more time, I will go into more detail about my opinion of vaccines (especially regarding neonatal immunizations), but today's post is the result of some quick web searching on some of the diseases that we vaccinate against.

Diphtheria: Upper respiratory infection. The throat can swell nearly shut, as shown here. Strikes hard at young children. Chance of death even today is between 5 and 10% of cases. Spreads through the air.

Polio. While only a small percentage of people who contract polio have the very worst kind, the damage to the nerves is irreparable. Polio outbreaks still occur in developed countries, mostly in unvaccinated communities.

Pertussis (Whooping cough): Shown here is a boy with broken eye vessels and bruising to the face from the severity of coughing. Coughing spells are so violent they often cause vomiting or temporary lack of consciousness.

Measles: Roughly a week of itchy, whole-body rashes. Complications can be deadly, especially among young patients. Prior to a vaccine, it was so widespread that almost everyone contracted it at one point.

Tetanus: Potent infection of the nervous system by a bacteria, Clostridium tetani, that lives in the soil nearly everywhere. Infection occurs when the spores enter a deep wound. The bacteria releases a potent toxin that causes muscle spasms that can stop breathing. Morbidity without treatment is 1 in 4. Morbidity with treatment is less than 10%.

Varicella (Chickenpox): Particularly harsh in infants and older people. Chickenpox is often severest, however, in pregnant women. Varicella infection in non-immune, pregnant women can pass to the fetus and cause infection; if the infection occurs during the first 28 weeks, the fetus can develop "fetal varicella syndrome" which can cause underdeveloped fingers and toes, severe anal and bladder malformation, brain and eye damage, and skin lesions. If the infection affects the fetus late in gestation or at delivery, the neonate is at great risk for developing pneumonia or secondary complications.

This infant contracted varicella at birth from the infected mother. The sores became secondarily infected with Staph and child was put on antibiotics and kidney dialysis.

Hepatitis B: A swelling of the liver from a viral infection. Most newborns and 50% of children who contract Hepatitis B develop chronic hepatitis. Chronic hepatitis can lead to risks for liver problems such as liver cancer. Chronic hepatitis patients are also carriers of the disease and may transmit it to other people.

Rotavirus: One of the most common causes of severe diarrhea in young children. Accounts for a huge percentage of hospitalizations for diarrhea in young children.

Haemophilus influenzae type b: A widespread bacteria that lives normally in your body but can take advantage of it when you are weak, say, with a cold. In young children, it was the leading cause of bacterial meningitis, but can also cause many other problems including pneumonia. Children under 5 are at most risk for serious cases.

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So there you have it. A quick summary of some of the more prominent routine U.S. immunizations. Vaccination these days is a touchy subject. I hope that parents everywhere are doing their research as they make some tough decisions.