A Dose of Compliance:
Educators Enforce Policy on Chickenpox and Hepatitis B Vaccines, Sending
Reluctant Students to Clinics
In Maryland, more than 16,000
students had to receive
Hepatitis B and chickenpox vaccinations before
attending school. The shoots had to be done by January 4. The parents
had to show proof of appointments to get their kid enrolled in Baltimore
City and Baltimore, Harfore, Carroll Howard, and Anne Arundel counties.
The pediatricians and school nurses are administering the inoculations
that students must get those shots before attending school.
Hepatitis B is caused by the hepatitis B virus
(HBV). The clinical manifestations of HBV infection range in severity
from no symptoms to fulminant hepatitis. Signs and symptoms of hepatitis
B may include fever, malaise, anorexia, nausea, and abdominal
discomfort, followed within a few days by jaundice.
For nearly a year, the school districts
reminded students and guardians that this procedure will have to be done
before attending the new school year. Greg Reed, the state Health
Department’s Center for Immunization program director said that the
local health departments used $1.3 million in state funding to operate
clinics and coordinate outreach with schools. The vaccination shots were
scheduled to be done for the 2006-07 school
year. But then, the schedule had
changed to January 1 to bost some compliance.
The district’s health program director,
Maureen Diaczok, received calls from parents of noncompliant students.
Maureen said, “Some were argumentative and would say they gave us proof
and that we lost it and some came to clinics this week with the letters
we sent to them in March or April.”
Jane Howson, nursing supervisor for
Annapolis Pediatrics, said “We had some parents tell us they were just
notified, but they’ve brought letters dated Dec. 11th”. Anne Arundel
County locations also experienced some problems. Howson also says,
“Maybe it was holiday time when all this stuff was going on, so these
notices got left in backpacks and unopened mail. But it's been a panic
because kids have been kept out of school, and we're doing what we can
to get everybody back there”. A lot of parents were not notified by
students of this matter and that became a big problem in Maryland of
several counties. And many schools had trouble getting parents to
rectify.
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Hepatitis B
(Surface Antigen & core
Antibodies)
it is estimated that
1 to 1.25 million people in the United States have chronic Hepatitis B.
there are an estimated
140,000 to 320,000 new Hepatitis B infections each year
in the United States.
Hepatitis B can
cause chronic infection, cirrhosis (scarring) of the liver, liver cancer,
liver failure and death.
Hepatitis B is preventable
through vaccination.
Hepatitis B (HBV) is a serious viral infection of the liver.
HBV is found in transmittable levels in body fluids including:
Semen
Vaginal secretions
Saliva
Blood
HBV may be
transmitted:
Sexually (having
unprotected sex with an infected person)
Intravenously
(sharing injecting drug needles or paraphernalia with an infected person)
Neonatally
(mother-to-child if the mother is infected with HBV)
HBV may also be
transmitted in rare cases:
Horizontally (oral
exposure to infected secretions such as saliva). Saliva can be a means of
transmission through bites; however, other types of exposure to saliva,
including kissing, are unlikely ways of transmission.
Risk of transmission
from blood transfusion is currently low in the United States since blood
banks screen donated blood that appears to be infected.
What are the signs or symptoms of hepatitis B?
Many adults have few or no symptoms. When symptoms are present they may
include:
Anorexia (loss of
appetite)
Malaise
Nausea and vomiting
Abdominal pain
Dark urine
Jaundice (yellowing
of the skin and eyes)
Rash or arthritis may
occur during the prodromal or early acute stage.
Your health care provider
can confirm HBV by using a special blood test to detect HBV particles or
antibodies in the blood.
Babies born to infected
mothers should get blood tests at aged 9 to 15 months to be certain that the
vaccine worked well and that the mother did not pass HBV to her baby during
birth.
Reducing the risk.
Hepatitis B is
preventable through vaccination. Since hepatitis D can only co-exist with
hepatitis B, getting vaccinated against hepatitis B also protects you
against hepatitis D.
The HBV vaccine is
given in a series of three doses.
A new combination
vaccine called Twinrix has been approved for protection from both HAV and
HBV in persons 18 and older. It reduces the total number of injections for
vaccination from both viruses from five to three.
The first and
second doses must be given at least one month apart.
The first and third
doses must be given at least 4 months apart.
If a dose is
missed, it should be given as soon as possible.
The series should
not be restarted if a dose is missed.
Routine booster
doses of the HBV vaccine are NOT currently recommended.
Consult your health
care provider for more information about the HBV vaccine and if it is
right for you.
HIV can impair the
response to the hepatitis vaccine.
STDWeB provides only health screening services. Tests are provided only for
personal information and/or risk identification purposes. STDWeB does not
diagnose or treat medical conditions. STDWeB screenings do not take the
place of a physician care. Transactions with STDWeB are confidential and
will not be shared with third parties. Tests with "positive" or "indeterminate"
result may require confirmatory testing and may involve additional charges.
