DTaP vaccine and diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis: Raise your hand if you want a plain pertussis-only vaccine?

Tuesday, August 28, 2007

 
Although the D and the T diseases are virtually unheard of in infants and young children in the United States, the P disease, pertussis, is still very common and can be very serious for infants. This makes this vaccine very important, and I place it first on my Alternative Vaccine Schedule.

But wouldn't it be nice if you could just give your baby a pertussis vaccine, and delay the D and the T components until later in childhood? According to the vaccine product insert, it may be the Tetanus component of the vaccine that is responsible for the neurologic reactions (see The Vaccine Book). Unfortunately, an individual pertussis vaccine isn't available. Interestingly, however, P component of this vaccine is manufactured separately from the D and T parts, then combined at the end of the process. So it seems plausible that a separate pertussis vaccine could be done. It's quite the dilemma.