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I dont think that...

Edit: but i do find it curious that we need to vaccinate children for hep b. Just does not make sense.
 
kcirdor said:
I dont think that...

Edit: but i do find it curious that we need to vaccinate children for hep b. Just does not make sense.
Click to expand...

It would have surprised me if you did, but that did seem to be the implications of your admittedly cryptic posts on the subject. Glad that's not the case.

I don't know about the Hep B thing. I don't believe that my daughter, born in 2003, was even given that one. And, in the interest of full disclosure the alleged vaccine/autism link did concern me back then because I knew a woman who swore her kid got autism from childhood vaccinations. But, I looked at the literature and talked to doctors about it and satisfied myself that there was no link. Although my doctor did mention that if there was any risk it was due to the number of vaccinations and the preservative in those vaccinations which is why as of at least 2003, they were combining childhood vaccinations to give fewer shots.

But, in the end, 22 years later I don't think there is any evidence that even the number of vaccinations was causing Autism. It appears that the seeming rise in Autism is more about doctors looking for it and diagnosing it in cases where previously people were thought of as ADHD or just different. Which is why they now often talk in terms of on the spectrum for various levels of Autism or neuro divergent as a catchall for Autism and ADHD. But, I honestly haven't spent a lot of time looking at it since I don't have any kids young enough for this to be relevant to my life other than the lack of vaccinations leading to the return of things like measles.
 
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kcirdor said:
I dont think that...

Edit: but i do find it curious that we need to vaccinate children for hep b. Just does not make sense.
Click to expand...
It's part of a global health strategy to eliminate viral hepatitis as a public health threat. One paper on that, on the introduction of it in the UK : https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC6422463/

In May 2016, 194 member states of the World Health Assembly – including the UK – signed up to the first ever Global Health Sector Strategy (GHSS) on Viral Hepatitis to eliminate viral hepatitis as a public health threat by 2030. This strategy set global targets for viral hepatitis, with a goal of a 90% reduction in incident hepatitis B (and C) chronic cases and 65% reduction in mortality by 2030. In pursuit of this ultimate elimination goal and recognising that hepatitis control through immunisation is an essential foundation of a hepatitis B prevention programme, the World Health Organization set out vaccine coverage targets for both universal childhood immunisation and selective immunisation to prevent mother to child transmission.​

As the section on epidemiology makes clear, it's a nasty infection, and children and infants are more likely to progress to chronic disease if infected. So universal immunisation, which is thought to provide persistent immunity for 30 years plus, has a clear justification to provide both individual protection and reduce the risk overall.
 
RFKjr reminds me of Lord Farquaad from Shrek when he says "some of you may die, but its a risk i'm willing to take".. maybe someone posted a meme here about it...

Hep B is nasty and does a number on your liver and there is no cure. its not like Measels or Covid where once it runs its course its gone..
 
I went back through my old OB and Peds textbooks last night to try and further my understanding of the Hep B vaccine at birth. I'll try to simplify this as best I can from my understanding:

Transmission from mother to infant occurred in close to 90% of infants with an infected mother prior to administration of the vaccine (which is typically given within 48-72 hours after birth). Because the virus does not cross the placental barrier the child is not at great risk of exposure prior to a live birth. There may be some exposure in utero in conditions such as an abruption, uterine rupture, or placentitis (maybe placenta previa, but I really don't recall). So the child is reasonably protected in utero assuming there is no placental damage.

The vaccine that is given at birth is a bit different than what many may think of as a traditional vaccine, in that it is paired with Hep B Immunoglobulin in incidents of an affected mother, which is significant for bolstering the immune system to produce antibodies that immediately begin working to fight surface antigens that the child was exposed to during live birth. This combination has been pretty effective in neutralizing the virus after exposure. The statistics on this are pretty staggering in how effective it's been (I'm blanking on them now, but I'm sure they can be easily found online).

So if the mother doesn't have Hep B, why would we give it at birth? Some places opt not to, Australia being one such example. However, Australia utilizes a pretty vast screening procedure to catch this (hopefully) earlier.

I remember it being a curious thing when I was in OB. It never really made sense, but I assumed there was good reason. I appreciate the skepticism, because I definitely wouldn't have ever gone back to look without it. Also, I just generally never plan to work in OB. :hihi:

EDIT: I also wanted to add that if vaccinated, a mother can safely breastfeed even if she has Hep B. This is particularly notable because although Hep B is bloodborne, issues like mastitis (which can cause cracked or bleeding nipples) can cause unnecessary exposure.
 
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bigdaddysaints said:
RFKjr reminds me of Lord Farquaad from Shrek when he says "some of you may die, but its a risk i'm willing to take".. maybe someone posted a meme here about it...

Hep B is nasty and does a number on your liver and there is no cure. its not like Measels or Covid where once it runs its course its gone..
Click to expand...
My brother had it, and once it ran its course its gone.
 
kcirdor said:
My brother had it, and once it ran its course its gone.
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This was 20 years ago after stealing my identity to pay for his addictions, after getting out of jail he spent a few months basically bed ridden in pain, took medication and after a while he was fine. I don't know the fine details of his recovery and frankly dont give a sheet.
 
it's definitely one of those that can go away, but can also turn chronic. but it can also go dormant for many years and pop up later..
 

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