Girlie AGDee's College Search Thread

[Sciencewoman]

Whooping cough? That is pertussis, right? That is in the DTP vaccine, so she should be all set coming from Michigan. This is what happens when people don't get their children vaccinated. This drives my pediatrician sister nuts!

[Munchkin03]

Originally Posted by Sciencewoman

Whooping cough? That is pertussis, right? That is in the DTP vaccine, so she should be all set coming from Michigan. This is what happens when people don't get their children vaccinated. This drives my pediatrician sister nuts!

Her parents could have very well have had her vaccinated to schedule but, from what it appears, the vaccine wears down after about 10 years so if she had it before kindergarten she may have needed a booster anyway. Not sure if Columbia requires the DPT booster for an incoming student; I don't remember needing one when I started there but I'm pretty vigilant about vaccinations so the ones I had before undergrad and studying abroad were probably sufficient.

Did her roommate have to travel far to get to school? Airplanes and airports are pretty much vectors for this sort of thing.

[AOIIalum]

Originally Posted by Sciencewoman

Whooping cough? That is pertussis, right? That is in the DTP vaccine, so she should be all set coming from Michigan. This is what happens when people don't get their children vaccinated. This drives my pediatrician sister nuts!

Hopefully she understands those of us who watched their infant have a horrible reaction to first DPT vaccination. Eldest ended up in the hospital after his first one and they determined it was due to the Pertussis component. From then on all three boys only had the DT shots. Unfortunately, middle did have Pertussis in HS but was caught early and he was fine. Youngest's last booster was the full DPT and luckily he did not have a reaction, but was watched closely during the possible reaction time by the doctors. Allergic reactions are serious!

Dee, hope Hypo's roommate recovers quickly and uneventfully. Glad Barnard is taking good care of them both.

[Sciencewoman]

Originally Posted by AOIIalum

Hopefully she understands those of us who watched their infant have a horrible reaction to first DPT vaccination. Eldest ended up in the hospital after his first one and they determined it was due to the Pertussis component. From then on all three boys only had the DT shots. Unfortunately, middle did have Pertussis in HS but was caught early and he was fine. Youngest's last booster was the full DPT and luckily he did not have a reaction, but was watched closely during the possible reaction time by the doctors. Allergic reactions are serious!

That's a medically legitimate reason to not have a certain vaccine...she's talking about the parents who listen to debunked urban legends/internet misinformation about vaccines, and don't listen to their pediatrician who tries to explain the research-based, acknowledged risks and benefits. They avoid all vaccines and it upsets her when their children contract illnesses that could have been prevented. As AGDee said, in Michigan you can "opt out" from the required vaccines, and parents have been doing this to the point were certain illnesses have flared up again...and that affects kids like your sons who can't have a certain vaccine for a legitimate reason.

My take is, if there's a shot and you don't have a legitimate reason why you can't have it...get it! My kids have gotten every optional vaccine there is! My daughter had the varicella vaccine as a baby, when it first came out. I had chicken pox when I was 25, and I didn't want her to deal with that, or worry about shingles later in life.

[AXOmom]

This isn't meant to scare anyone - just that this issue came up in another thread that I think I posted (don't remember now) regarding a young woman on my daughter's campus who died from bacterial menangitis last spring.

There was a brief discussion about school vaccination requirements for living in a dorm. (it would have been a moot point in this case since the young lady was living in a sorority house and not a dorm). Daughter's school (my am) didn't require them which surprises me even now. I believe her first school did. I can't quite figure, given the liability issues, why every school wouldn't require proof of this to live on campus. Actually it surprises me that GLO's don't require vaccinations to live in the house. Wouldn't this be a lawsuit waiting to happen?

Ironically, in this case, the girl had a previous bout with bacterial menangitis her freshman year and had, I assume, gotten treatment quickly enough that she recovered then.