Meningitis Vaccines Available!!!

[LilMsSunshine]

Meningitis Vaccines Are Available At the Kenosha County Health Department, at the Kenosha County Job Center Building, at 8600 Sheridan Road, Suite 600, Kenosha, WI...Office Hours are Mon-Fri 8:00am - 5:00pm. The phone number is (262)605-6700. The cost is $7.00 and you must provide prior shot records or they will not give the vaccine.

In case any of you haven't heard, another high school teen died from Meningitis. This time it was in West Allis and he went to West Allis Central H.S.

[pk]

Thanks Sunshine for sharing this. I just read this on a news alert. It's really important that people realize that there is a preventable measure they can take to avoid this illness.

I looked into this awhile ago when the student died at one of our high schools but could not find much about shots etc. Even though they say there is no connection between the two students and there is not a cause to worry, they do show you places where the shot is being offered now.

I think we should all consider getting our preteens/teens this important shot. I would hate to have my child come down with Meningitis when a shot was offered to avoid this.

I'm surprised that this shot is not on the list of required shots for middle school/high school. This illness has a much higher rate of serious complications than chicken pox of which is a shot required, but so far ithis shot is not required for older children. Not sure if I undersand that.

Anyone know any further information about the Menigitis shot? Is this a shot that you made sure your child was given? What are the risks, side affects, warnings if any on this shot? How long does this shot last? Years? One time shot? Should all adults consider this shot also?

I will try to find out more answers and post them but if anyone else knows about this subject please post it for me/us.

Thanks,
pk

[keith]

I remember polio vaccinations over 40 years ago. Everyone in town under a certain age was at the high school in an assembly line of vaccinations.

I remember similar walks through a line of multiple vaccinations, this time with using vaccine 'guns'. Hundreds of us were vaccinated in under an hour, over 30 years ago, during basic training in the army.

Why don't we do mass vaccinations anymore? Do we have to have an epidemic before we address basic vaccinations?

Thanks for posting this news. I was unaware of this before now, and I have four kids between middle school and college frosh.

Regards,
Keith

[StormCloud]

All Vaccines carry a risk of potential side effects. They are drugs after all. With the meningococcal vaccine, the risk is highest for college age persons, so thats why it is urged for college students. MS and HS aged kids have a low risk of developing the disease. But, of course a family may opt to have their kids immunized, after careful consideration of the risks vs. benefits.

[pk]

MS and HS aged kids have a low risk of developing the disease

My youngest daughter is entering high school this year and I am seriously thinking of getting the meningococcal vaccine. I know they say it is more prominent in college but if I remember correctly last winter several high school kids in our area became infected and one died. I will have to look that up but I'm sure that is correct. So I am thinking why take the risk of not being protected?

My question that I need to find out. If she gets this shot now how long is it good for? Is this a yearly shot, or one that lasts for many years so she will be protected all through the rest of her school years?

[StormCloud]

I found this on the CDC website:

Meningitis Vaccine for Adolescents

A meningitis vaccine called Menactra, which was approved by the FDA a year ago, is also recommended for:

* All 11- and 12-year-olds
* Adolescents entering high school who haven't already gotten the vaccine
* All college freshmen living in dorms (who have the additional option of getting a different meningitis vaccine)
* Other adolescents who choose to get the vaccine to reduce their risk

The CDC first announced its Menactra recommendations in May.

In October 2005, the FDA, the CDC, and Menactra's maker, Sanofi Pasteur, warned that five U.S. teens developed a serious neurological condition called Guillain-Barré syndrome after being vaccinated with Menactra.

At the time, a Sanofi Pasteur news release stated that there was no proof that Menactra was responsible for those teens developing Guillain-Barré syndrome.

At its October 20, 1999 meeting, the ACIP, citing results of two CDC studies done in 1998 which identified the slightly higher risk among freshman dormitory residents, recommended that those who provide medical care to this group give information to students and their parents about meningococcal disease and the benefits of vaccination. Vaccination should be provided or made easily available to those freshmen who wish to reduce their risk of disease. Other undergraduate students wishing to reduce their risk of meningococcal disease can also choose to be vaccinated.

A single dose of the vaccine is recommended, and vaccination will decrease the risk of disease caused by N. meningitidis serogroups A, C, Y, and W-135. However, vaccination will not totally eliminate risk of the disease because the vaccine does not protect against serogroup B and because, although it is highly effective against serogroups C and Y, it still does not confer 100% protection against these serogroups. In 1998-1999, serogroups C and Y caused about 70% of cases among college students.

for more detailed info, see:
http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vpd-vac/...-mening-fs.htm

[StormCloud]

Also from the CDC regarding potential side effects:

The promise of mass protection, however, suffered a setback recently with news of a potential, but unproven, association between the vaccine, Menactra, and a serious neurological disorder called Guillain-Barr syndrome, or GBS. The information initially caused some local pediatricians to suspend use of the vaccine.

The concerns were prompted by an alert issued Sept. 30 by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. It noted five youngsters had come down with GBS soon after getting the Menactra vaccine. A sixth case was reported after the alert was sent out.

The initial five cases were in patients 17 or 18 years old, and all developed weakness or abnormal sensations in their arms or legs two to four weeks after the shot. Each of the cases remains under investigation. All of the teens are recovering.

Federal health officials stress that, while the timing of the events is cause for concern, the number of cases so far reported among teens immunized with Menactra is no greater than what would be expected to occur without vaccination. They note, also, that no cases of Guillain Barr cropped up during clinical trials of the vaccine.

"It is something we need to look at very carefully, and that's what's being done," said Dr. Joseph Bocchini, chief of pediatric infectious diseases at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center and a member of the infectious disease committee of the American Academy of Pediatrics.