Vaccinations part of ‘bigger picture’
The issue of immunisation is deeply polarising as the response to Dr Lance O’Sullivan’s protest at a screening of the documentary Vaxxed shows.
There are people in both camps whose views won’t be shifted – that’s fine by me. We live in a world where free speech and the right to hold opinions (however extreme they may be) is allowed. But what I do feel strongly about is ensuring that people hear the scientific facts before they decide on their opinion – the process of informed consent, in medical terms.
It’s sad that some people believe doctors are ‘‘pushing’’ vaccines, in the knowledge that they may do harm, as some sort of cover-up operation for the Government. I can put my hand on my heart and tell you this isn’t the case.
Before the introduction of vaccines, millions of children and adults around the world died from diseases that we now don’t even really consider as threats – polio, tetanus, diphtheria, measles, whooping cough to name a few.
If we look at measles as an example, in the pre-immunisation era about 4 million cases were reported in the United States each year – this number is now tiny in the US and here, because of high vaccination rates. However, in developing countries where they don’t have access to the vaccination, measles is still a very common infection.
We know that during outbreaks, around one in 1000 affected people will die, and one in 20 will end up in hospital. Compare this to the rates of adverse effects from the measles vaccination (less than one in a million doses given will lead to a severe allergic reaction) and for me the decision is actually quite simple.
I don’t think many people could convincingly argue that vaccines cause more fatalities than they prevent. But we are not only talking about deaths – we are also debating potential harms. All vaccines can and will cause sideeffects in some people, and all people giving vaccines should be happy to openly discuss this with you. These side-effects will vary from very mild and very common, to serious and thankfully really rare.
Common, mild side effects are often a sign that a vaccine is actually doing its job – as your body mounts an immune response to the vaccination component (to enable you to fight off that infection in the future if you are ever exposed to it), it is likely you will feel a bit ‘‘off’’ – achey, tired and perhaps with slightly swollen glands. Some people will have more of a local response, noticing a sore, red area around the vaccination site itself.
More severe reactions are really uncommon – for example, one in 3000 people who receive the measles vaccination will have a seizure in response to it, and one in 30,000 may get a temporary lowering of the platelets in their bloodstream. More rare reactions than this have been reported too, but are so rare that it is actually not scientifically possible to prove a link – in fact it is highly likely that more unusual effects are actually just co-incidental in terms of the timing of the vaccination, rather than causative.
We know lots about the range and frequency of side-effects from vaccinations as every reaction has to be notified and logged (with the Centre for Adverse Reactions Monitoring), so that safety considerations can be reviewed, and vaccinations modified if needed.
This information is all stored on a database, and you can ask to see this data before making vaccination decisions.
As a doctor, but more importantly as a mother, I have read all the pros and cons, and carefully considered the science around immunisations. It is easy to become complacent in a country like ours – where we have ready access to good quality healthcare, and deadly infections are thankfully almost confined to the history books.
But for me, considering the best interests of my children, but also in the hope that I could be part of a bigger picture in eradicating some of these awful diseases entirely, I have taken my children for all their immunisations and will continue to do so until they are old enough to decide which side of the debate they want to take.
To view more information about vaccine safety, visit medsafe.govt.nz ❚ Dr Cathy Stephenson is a GP and a forensic medical examiner.