School Polio Vaccine

[silentnine]

HI All.

had a letter back from my 3 year olds schhol today saying they are doing vaccines for polio next week.

is the vaccine in thailand safe ? i thought in the EU the polio jab was now replaced by a suger lump with something on it ? maybee mistaken ..

[Mario2008]

Moved to health forum, for better answers.

[geriatrickid]

I believe that if the child is 3 or older, this is the booster. The child should have had its primary innoculation already. My understanding is that Sanofi Pasteur is the manufacturer. SP is a an international reputable firm. As the polio prevention program is a major initiative in Thailand, there is reliable oversight. The Mellnda and Bill Gates Foundation in conjunction with the Rotary Clubs fund a large part of the free vaccinations that are done in Dec/jan. They are responsible groups.

One of the reasons there hasn't been a polio case in Thailand for the past 15 years is because of the vaccine program. However, with the presence of possible foreign carriers it is prudent to maintain the vaccination program. India, Nigeria and Pakistan still have polio and their nationals can be carriers. Thailand has been vaccinating refugee and migrant children as well to protect the overall population.

Unless your child has underlying medical conditions or symptoms contrary to the use of the product, I do not forsee a problem outside of some local pain and redness that will go away in a day or so. You can either read the product monograph or discuss your concerns with the local health official. (Read the monograph, as the nurse will probably just smile and say, no problem.)

[Sheryl]

It is indeed a booster. Unless there has been a very recent change in policy, it will be an oral vaccine (the sugar lump you refer to).

The polio immunization schedule in Thailand is as follows:

ages 2, 4 and 6 months (original series)

age 18 months and age 4-6 years (approximately) - boosters

There is no harm in getting more than 2 boosters nor in getting one of the booster doses a bit earlier or later than on the above schedule.

The oral polio vaccine in use in Thailand AFAIK is manufactured by GlaxoSmithKline and imported. No issues with its quality.

In recent years many developed countries have switched over from the oral polio vaccine to a schedule that uses the injectable one first and then oral for boosters. This is because the oral vaccine contains a small amount of live polio virus, and a very small minority of people who receive it develop the disease as a result -- about one in 500,000. On the other hand, the oral vaccine is more effective than the injectable in eradicating polio in settings where it is still endemic.

WHO's recommendation is that countries gradually switch over to the injectable vaccine for the initial series once the wild polio virus is confirmed to have been eradicated and certain other criteria regarding vaccine coverage and surveillance systems are met. Thailand isn't at that point yet but probably will be sometime in the coming years.

As mentioned the risks of vaccine-induced polio from the oral vaccine are extremely small, and this usually occurs when the oral vaccine was accompanied by an injection (which will not be the case for the OP's child) and is a risk limited to the initial series. By the time a child is getting a booster, it is no longer even a remote risk since there are already antibodies to the virus. .

[femi fan]

One of the reasons there hasn't been a polio case in Thailand for the past 15 years is because of the vaccine program. However, with the presence of possible foreign carriers it is prudent to maintain the vaccination program. India, Nigeria and Pakistan still have polio and their nationals can be carriers. Thailand has been vaccinating refugee and migrant children as well to protect the overall population.

Would it be possible to provide any evidence that there have been no cases of polio in that time period? And, if the vaccination program is 'one' of the reasons, what are the other reasons, especially if as you say lots of carriers come to thailand from other parts asia and from africa?

[FBN]

It is a booster dose and that is adequate reason. The fact that the risk of polio is increased to the possible influx of carriers makes it even more important. Polio is a debilitating disease and the vaccine is safe and proven; it seems the logical thing to do..