Hep B shot at birth

Runaway22 · December 2012

I'm going to snoop around Google some more, but everything I find seems kind of biased. Wondering what you ladies think...

Isn't Hep B something you get from sharing needles? If this is the case, what on earth is the shot at birth for? Seems excessive to me...

Please, if you must flame, don't flame too hard. I won't debate the overall vaccine thing. This one in particular just kinda stumps me.

Runaway22 · December 2012

secondaryPULSE:

Yes. Hepatitis B is transmitted sexually and through contaminated blood products and needles. The reason there's a big push for vaccination at birth is just to push for overall Hep B vaccine compliance.
Our MW doesn't give Hep B at birth, but if she were to offer it, we would refuse it until he got his later shots (at 2 months).

Guess I'll be breaking the news to my dr about refusing it at my next appt. What about that vitamin K shot? Is that standard, too, or is it just hospitals being extra cautious again?

pantherRN · December 2012

Runaway22:
secondaryPULSE:

Yes. Hepatitis B is transmitted sexually and through contaminated blood products and needles. The reason there's a big push for vaccination at birth is just to push for overall Hep B vaccine compliance.
Our MW doesn't give Hep B at birth, but if she were to offer it, we would refuse it until he got his later shots (at 2 months).
Guess I'll be breaking the news to my dr about refusing it at my next appt. What about that vitamin K shot? Is that standard, too, or is it just hospitals being extra cautious again?

Newborns are born without vitamin K, which plays an important part in the blood clotting cascade. Personally, I think the vitamin K is important. Do your research on it, there is an oral form of vitamin K available, but the shot is going to give you the quickest results.

We'll likely decline HBV and get vitamin K.

hilwithonelary · December 2012

I delayed Hep B with both my kids until their two month appointment. However, after having DD I learned some information that changed my mind. If a young infant is infected with Hep B, the likelihood it will covert into chronic disease is very high... I believe over 90 percent. This differs from an adult where the likelihood is more around 50 percent. The way I see it is that while there is a minuscule chance of my baby getting infected, the consequences of infection are very great. If I ever had a third, he/she will be getting Hep B in the hospital.

oliversmommy32912 · December 2012

We opted out. DS is 8 months old and he still hasn't had it. I figure if I'm not worried about him catching HIV then why would I be worried about him catching Hep B? They are transmitted the same way. I was negative for Hep B when I was tested during pregnancy and I am in a monogamous relationship so I had no risk factors. We will do the series before he starts school because the chance of exposure will be greater. If he was in daycare I would also have him get it, no question. We would also get it if anyone in our family had Hep B. We are definitely pro-vaccine but we just didn't see a reason to give this one to a newborn.

As for Vit K, we did get it, because we didn't do the Erythromycin gel and I didn't want to fight the hospital on too many things. We decided the benefits of Vit K outweighed the risk. However, having researched it more extensively since his birth, I would opt out of it next time and go with oral Vit K instead. We plan on having a birth center birth with a CPM for the next birth so I don't think we will get too much push back on this like we may have in the hospital.

Lariah14 · December 2012

oliversmommy32912:
We opted out. DS is 8 months old and he still hasn't had it. I figure if I'm not worried about him catching HIV then why would I be worried about him catching Hep B? They are transmitted the same way. I was negative for Hep B when I was tested during pregnancy and I am in a monogamous relationship so I had no risk factors. We will do the series before he starts school because the chance of exposure will be greater. If he was in daycare I would also have him get it, no question. We would also get it if anyone in our family had Hep B. We are definitely pro-vaccine but we just didn't see a reason to give this one to a newborn.
As for Vit K, we did get it, because we didn't do the Erythromycin gel and I didn't want to fight the hospital on too many things. We decided the benefits of Vit K outweighed the risk. However, having researched it more extensively since his birth, I would opt out of it next time and go with oral Vit K instead. We plan on having a birth center birth with a CPM for the next birth so I don't think we will get too much push back on this like we may have in the hospital.

FYI: Hep B can live on a a dry surface for at least seven days. Dried blood poses an infection risk. HIV does not. We deferred it w/ DS b/c he had jaundice issues at birth, but won't this time. DS got nicked with hair clippers at a salon and it drew blood- now I wish we hadn't deferred it. As PP's said "The younger a person is when infected with Hepatitis B virus, the greater his or her chance of developing chronic Hepatitis B. Approximately 90% of infected infants will develop chronic infection. The risk goes down as a child gets older. Approximately 25%?50% of children infected between the ages of 1 and 5 years will develop chronic hepatitis. The risk drops to 6%?10% when a person is infected over 5 years of age."

https://www.cdc.gov/hepatitis/b/bfaq.htm

oliversmommy32912 · December 2012

Lariah14:
oliversmommy32912:
We opted out. DS is 8 months old and he still hasn't had it. I figure if I'm not worried about him catching HIV then why would I be worried about him catching Hep B? They are transmitted the same way. I was negative for Hep B when I was tested during pregnancy and I am in a monogamous relationship so I had no risk factors. We will do the series before he starts school because the chance of exposure will be greater. If he was in daycare I would also have him get it, no question. We would also get it if anyone in our family had Hep B. We are definitely pro-vaccine but we just didn't see a reason to give this one to a newborn.
As for Vit K, we did get it, because we didn't do the Erythromycin gel and I didn't want to fight the hospital on too many things. We decided the benefits of Vit K outweighed the risk. However, having researched it more extensively since his birth, I would opt out of it next time and go with oral Vit K instead. We plan on having a birth center birth with a CPM for the next birth so I don't think we will get too much push back on this like we may have in the hospital.
FYI: Hep B can live on a a dry surface for at least seven days. Dried blood poses an infection risk. HIV does not. We deferred it w/ DS b/c he had jaundice issues at birth, but won't this time. DS got nicked with hair clippers at a salon and it drew blood- now I wish we hadn't deferred it. As PP's said "The younger a person is when infected with Hepatitis B virus, the greater his or her chance of developing chronic Hepatitis B. Approximately 90% of infected infants will develop chronic infection. The risk goes down as a child gets older. Approximately 25%?50% of children infected between the ages of 1 and 5 years will develop chronic hepatitis. The risk drops to 6%?10% when a person is infected over 5 years of age."

https://www.cdc.gov/hepatitis/b/bfaq.htm

Thank you for the information. I do not regret our choice to wait.

aylafsu88 · December 2012

pantherRN:
Runaway22:
secondaryPULSE:

Yes. Hepatitis B is transmitted sexually and through contaminated blood products and needles. The reason there's a big push for vaccination at birth is just to push for overall Hep B vaccine compliance.
Our MW doesn't give Hep B at birth, but if she were to offer it, we would refuse it until he got his later shots (at 2 months).
Guess I'll be breaking the news to my dr about refusing it at my next appt. What about that vitamin K shot? Is that standard, too, or is it just hospitals being extra cautious again?
Newborns are born without vitamin K, which plays an important part in the blood clotting cascade. Personally, I think the vitamin K is important. Do your research on it, there is an oral form of vitamin K available, but the shot is going to give you the quickest results.
We'll likely decline HBV and get vitamin K.

The bold parts! I think the Vit K shot is pretty important and something that I thought LO needed to get. To me the benefits of the Vit K shot far outweighed the risks.

tokenhoser · December 2012

In Canada, we don't get the hep B vax until Grade 6. I think vitamin K is important, as you can't tell when it's going to save a life and the risk from it is very very small.

BLPL101 · December 2012

Our DD will be getting it along with the vit k shot.

MamaDailey · December 2012

We opted out of the Heb B at birth for my first daughter and she didn't get it until she was a few years old. Then my second daughter came 20 months later and we opted out of it again at birth, but then about six months later I came to realize that she had gotten anyway when she was a few months later because she got it in a combination vaccine. I really feel like the wool had been pulled over my eyes. I shouldn't have assumed that things were the same 20 months later. I tried not to be upset about it.

dalzien · December 2012

tokenhoser:
In Canada, we don't get the hep B vax until Grade 6. I think vitamin K is important, as you can't tell when it's going to save a life and the risk from it is very very small.

I don't know where you live in Canada, but that is no longer the case in the 2 provinces where we live. We just finished our prenatal classes in NB and have since moved back to Southern Ontario to give birth, and in both provinces they now give the Hep B shot at birth unless declined. You actually need to sign a waiver if you decline the vaccine. One of our last prenatal classes spent over an hour going over vaccines and other tests at birth. When I was younger I was given the shot in grade 6, but that was almost 16 years ago now.

Runaway22 · December 2012

MamaDailey:
We opted out of the Heb B at birth for my first daughter and she didn't get it until she was a few years old. Then my second daughter came 20 months later and we opted out of it again at birth, but then about six months later I came to realize that she had gotten anyway when she was a few months later because she got it in a combination vaccine. I really feel like the wool had been pulled over my eyes. I shouldn't have assumed that things were the same 20 months later. I tried not to be upset about it.

I would have been pretty upset. Parents have a right to know what's being injected into their kiddos

PS on the Vitamin K thing -- I think since I'll be BFing, barring necessary circumstances, I'll be taking a vitamin K supplement the first 6 months or so. If the doctor thinks LO *needs* vitamin K at birth, I'll be opting for the oral drops, not the jab. Since I'm STD-free, I'll be opting out of the antibiotic eyedrops, too. FTR, in case anyone cares lol

I did a lot of reading last night =O

tokenhoser · December 2012

dalzien:
tokenhoser:
In Canada, we don't get the hep B vax until Grade 6. I think vitamin K is important, as you can't tell when it's going to save a life and the risk from it is very very small.

I don't know where you live in Canada, but that is no longer the case in the 2 provinces where we live. We just finished our prenatal classes in NB and have since moved back to Southern Ontario to give birth, and in both provinces they now give the Hep B shot at birth unless declined. You actually need to sign a waiver if you decline the vaccine. One of our last prenatal classes spent over an hour going over vaccines and other tests at birth. When I was younger I was given the shot in grade 6, but that was almost 16 years ago now.

Saskatchewan still gives it in Grade 6; I've reviewed the schedule a lot in the last 18 months.

RJM050705 · December 2012

We're planning to delay it. DH & I both had to get it to start our BA degrees in the past few years. I'm also declining eye ointment and hoping for oral vit K instead of the shot.

sschwege · December 2012

My MW encouraged us to wait until BFing was well-established, so we did it at DD's two week appointment. We will do the same with this one.

As for Vitamin K we do it, I'm just not comfortable with taking the chance.

SunnyMuffin · December 2012

Good god no. It seems like an American thing. I got my Hep B shot in 6th grade and I think they still do it that way. No one tried to give my baby a Hepatitis shot at birth.

StarshineR · December 2012

Probably not. While the numbers are accurate (that Hep B is more likely to turn chronic if one catches it at a younger age), the incidence of the disease is quite low in most developed, Western countries, and the risk for childhood exposure is mostly in developing countries where sanitation is an issue in daily life. Because we are a cleaner society, most cases of Hep B are actually through STDs and shared needles, not happenstance infant exposures. Everything I've read about the Hep B vaccine is less about concern for the child's welfare and more about "eradicating" Hepatitis B as if it were smallpox.

Now, yes, of course the incidence of Hep B will lower in response to vaccinations - obviously. But the incidence was low to start off.

I don't believe that small bodies should be inundated with vaccines unnecessarily, as I'm dubious that their immune systems are developed enough to actually handle it propertly. Hep B, no. Polio, and tetanus, yes. Chicken Pox - never. MMR - can be delayed. Diphtheria and Pertussis - maybe - I'd want the doctor to split DPT vaccine. I'll need to look into Vitamin K to make a decision on that. Since I don't have Hep B (I chose to get vaccinated in school when I was still naive and believed everything the teachers told me - I didn't realize that I was extremely low risk), my child won't contract it from me. My blood was also tested for the disease recently. If I had Hep B, I would definitely get the infant vaccinated.

https://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs204/en/

https://www.cdc.gov/hepatitis/PDFs/US-surv_table.pdf

Even assuming that all Hep B cases weren't reported (because they were asymptomatic), let's say there was 10x more the actual incidence than reported, It's still not very high. These are the people who catch the acute infection, but note that not all of them become chronic carriers.

Necessarily, you are going to find higher carriers in the population than new cases of chronic Hep B. In spite of that, chronic cases of Hep B are still quite low (1 and a half million in the US - less than 1% of the population), and you can understand why they would be more common among adults since it is an STD.

I do not think it's necessary to vaccinate babies except under exceptional circumstances. So long as Mom isn't infected (and that is routinely tested for during normal prenatal care) and any primary caregivers aren't, the baby will most likely be fine for quite some time yet.

Note also, that of those who have chronic Hep B (remember less than 1% of the American population), " Hepatitis B is fatal in about 1% of cases."

https://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/000279.htm

When you see statements like "much higher risk of Big Bad Scary Thing", you need to take that into proportion with what the rates actually are to begin with.

I know, though, that some people don't see the harm in the injection. I'll note this:

https://www.aapsonline.org/testimony/hepbcom.htm

That is all.

NoeliaV · December 2012

We gave the Vit K shot at birth for a couple reasons. 1) If there was an issue with bleeding/clotting for her, and we had declined/delayed, it would most likely be too late for the shot to "fix" the problem. 2) The shot has a standard whereas the drops can vary in potency.

We declined the Hep B until her 2 month appt.

We didn't receive any negative feedback from the hospital about our choice to delay.

vintagejjane · December 2012

I didn't do either at birth. If we do decide to give the Hep B vaccine, it won't be until she is older.

nosoup4u · December 2012

We delayed Hep B for both our kids- DS1 got it around 2 years, and DS2 might have gotten it at his 2 year well visit (I can't remember!). We did Vitamin K both times.

shortstuff15 · December 2012

tokenhoser:
dalzien:
tokenhoser:
In Canada, we don't get the hep B vax until Grade 6. I think vitamin K is important, as you can't tell when it's going to save a life and the risk from it is very very small.
I don't know where you live in Canada, but that is no longer the case in the 2 provinces where we live. We just finished our prenatal classes in NB and have since moved back to Southern Ontario to give birth, and in both provinces they now give the Hep B shot at birth unless declined. You actually need to sign a waiver if you decline the vaccine. One of our last prenatal classes spent over an hour going over vaccines and other tests at birth. When I was younger I was given the shot in grade 6, but that was almost 16 years ago now.
Saskatchewan still gives it in Grade 6; I've reviewed the schedule a lot in the last 18 months.

Alberta also still gives in only in Grade 5. There is not even any mention of it prior to that.

Vita K we accepted on baby 1 because she was a vacuum delivery and declined on baby 2 because she was a no intervention/no drugs delivery. I'll spare you teh reasoning behind declining because I know most of you won't agree.

Runaway22 · December 2012

dhviel:
Alberta also still gives in only in Grade 5. There is not even any mention of it prior to that.
Vita K we accepted on baby 1 because she was a vacuum delivery and declined on baby 2 because she was a no intervention/no drugs delivery. <b>I'll spare you teh reasoning behind declining because I know most of you won't agree.</b>

Oh, now I must know. But I understand wanting to avoid TB drama. But I'm so exceedingly curious, feel free to PM me, if you like

shortstuff15 · December 2012

Runaway22:
dhviel:
Alberta also still gives in only in Grade 5. There is not even any mention of it prior to that.
Vita K we accepted on baby 1 because she was a vacuum delivery and declined on baby 2 because she was a no intervention/no drugs delivery. <b>I'll spare you teh reasoning behind declining because I know most of you won't agree.</b>
Oh, now I must know. But I understand wanting to avoid TB drama. But I'm so exceedingly curious, feel free to PM me, if you like

done.

luvmyducks · December 2012

We would have gotten the Hep B at the hospital under normal circumstances. But DD had to spend a day in the NICU and then have an IV attached to her the rest of our stay (ended up being 4 days) because of a possible infection (she had elevated white blood cell count). We felt so bad for her getting poked and prodded so much that we waited until we saw the Pedi when we went for her 1m appt and she got the 2nd shot at her 2m appt. This time around if things go well we will probably get it at the hospital, though our Pedi says it is fine to either get it there or wait to get it at their office.

wifeofadam · December 2012

We don't do either shot.

wittyschaffy · December 2012

Our LO will get Vit K and Hep B in the hospital. I will be going back to work 8 weeks postpartum and while I'm reasonably certain my child will not be going out and getting questionable tattoos or sharing needles with anyone, I can't guarantee that they won't accidentally get exposed to Hep B by someone who did while they're not in my care.

For us, the benefits outweighs the risk.

LadyMadrid08 · December 2012

SunnyMuffin:
Good god no. It seems like an American thing.

My DD was born in Spain. There the Hep B vaccine is given within the first month, though not usually at the hospital.

Here in Germany my pediatrician told me they don't administer the Hep B vaccine to infants unless there is a reason (mother has it). I will follow the guidelines of wherever we are.

ETA: For DD we got the oral vitamin K in the hospital. I haven't asked what the norm here is yet for LO2, but we will probably get the shot if it's available. DD threw up some strange stuff shortly after getting the oral vitamin K and I was always a little concerned she didn't fully ingest it.

nyki06 · December 2012

We didn't do it and then followed Dr. Sears alt schedule from that point on.

Hyaline · December 2012

What everyone else has said. My mw mentioned that there had been a big push from a public health perspective to get people vaccinated, so they push it at birth in case the baby never establishes regular care w/ a pedi. From her perspective there was no reason to push this particular vax over any other for a family intending to pursue "normal" infant care with a doc.

FWIW no one fought us one bit on declining it.

AimnJus917 · December 2012

The birth center I am going to do doesn't give shots so we will be getting Hep B at his first pedi appointment after birth. We are doing Vitamin K as well. In regards to vaccinations, I think the benefits outweigh the risks so we are following the normal schedule as recommended by the pedi. Daycare requires all kids to be up to date so delaying really isn't an option for us anyway.

sthomas1222 · December 2012

Hep B is transmitted through any blood contact. So those that compare it to HIV are right and wrong. It's not an STI, just like HIV it can also be transmitted from things like transfusions and whatnot. The first shot is usually done in the hospital just so the series can get started since it's 3 shots. It's one that I've seen given and declined equally. If declined it's highly recommended at the 2 month visit. The Vit K I wouldn't forego, there's little to no risk and highly beneficial.

Smartie26 · December 2012

dhviel:
tokenhoser:
dalzien:
tokenhoser:
In Canada, we don't get the hep B vax until Grade 6. I think vitamin K is important, as you can't tell when it's going to save a life and the risk from it is very very small.
I don't know where you live in Canada, but that is no longer the case in the 2 provinces where we live. We just finished our prenatal classes in NB and have since moved back to Southern Ontario to give birth, and in both provinces they now give the Hep B shot at birth unless declined. You actually need to sign a waiver if you decline the vaccine. One of our last prenatal classes spent over an hour going over vaccines and other tests at birth. When I was younger I was given the shot in grade 6, but that was almost 16 years ago now.
Saskatchewan still gives it in Grade 6; I've reviewed the schedule a lot in the last 18 months.
Alberta also still gives in only in Grade 5. There is not even any mention of it prior to that.
Vita K we accepted on baby 1 because she was a vacuum delivery and declined on baby 2 because she was a no intervention/no drugs delivery. I'll spare you teh reasoning behind declining because I know most of you won't agree.

Yep - here in AB the immunization schedule administers Hep B vac at age 5. Also, dhviel you have a PM

AMarie1214 · December 2012

Not trying to start a war.. I just like to research and found the end of this article informative.

(and we wont be getting the hep b, vitamin k shot or eye ointment. we have our reasons.)

https://www.naturalnews.com/036006_vaccination_doctor_form.html

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