Chickenpox vaccinations can be a lifesaving shot

Most of us of a certain age, remember episodes of what were commonly called “childhood diseases.” Thanks to effective immunization, many of those viruses are no longer considered common in the U.S.

Anyone who has suffered a bout of chickenpox knows how awfully uncomfortable the rash can be. If you endured your child’s experience it’s left an indelible mark on your memory!

Before the vaccination became available in 1995, chickenpox affected approximately four million children each year, caused more than 100 deaths and was responsible for an estimated $400 million in medical costs and lost wages according to the Centers for Disease Control.

Thankfully, fewer than 10 deaths are attributed to the disease each year now, most of them in people who haven’t been immunized. But, although over 80 percent of children are now vaccinated outbreaks of chickenpox still occur in schools and daycare centers.

It’s not unheard of for a vaccinated person to contract the virus, however, they will usually get a very mild case lasting only a few days and involving fewer skin lesions and little to no fever.

Currently in our school system, children born after September 2005 need to be inoculated against Varicella (chickenpox). That means that there is probably a healthy (we hope) proportion of our population who haven’t had their shots. It’s important to talk to your medical provider to find out if you, or your children are protected.

Children should get the vaccine between the ages of 12 to 15 months with a booster shot at four to six years of age for further protection. The CDC also recommends that anyone over the age of 13 who hasn’t had the disease get two doses at least 28 days apart.

Unless you had the disease at a very young age, you remember it. Although the fever might have been slight, the major itch wasn’t. And the rash was in places you never imagined it could get to, like your mouth, nose, scalp, ears and genitals.

It was so infectious you could bet money on everyone in your family, schoolroom and the neighborhood catching it. In some communities, healthy children were encouraged to play with an infected child so mother could set the timer to know when her kids would be sick. Kiss that kid? Ewwwww.

Today there are only a handful of people who shouldn’t be vaccinated. Pregnant women should wait until they give birth. If you’re trying to get pregnant, wait at least a month after getting the vaccine. If you’ve ever had a life-threatening allergic reaction to a previous dose of chickenpox vaccine or to gelatin or the antibiotic neomycin, don’t get a shot. Also don’t get one if you’re sick, wait until you’ve recovered.

See your medical provider if you have an immune system disorder, HIV, are being treated with drugs that affect your immune system such as steroids or have any type of cancer particularly if you’re going through radiation and/or chemo.

If you’ve had chickenpox or been vaccinated, the varicella-zoster virus may lie dormant in your body causing a different disease, called shingles, to develop later in life. Next week we’ll explore that disease and the efficacy of the shingles vaccination.

Kathy Hubbard is a trustee on Bonner General Hospital Foundation Board. She can be reached at 264-4029 or by e-mail at kathyleehubbard@yahoo.com.