Yeti found out about through Scientific American, and we were the first parents in our area to ask for it - the chemist had to order it specially and it cost us over $100 per dose, but it was worth it - Wombat has never had a the slightest case of vomiting or diarrhoea, and while I think that is in part due to his isolation from other children, I also attribute it to the vaccine's effectiveness as well.
It is an oral vaccine, so there are no nasty needles to add to the pincushion regime that baby already faces! Just a chemical taste that is gone before you know it.
According to the US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention,
Rotavirus affects virtually all children during the first 5 years of life in both developed and developing countries, and rotavirus infection is the most common cause of severe gastroenteritis in the United States and worldwide.
The Australian National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance (NCIRS) has a Fact Sheet updated June 2007, which states that vaccination will "reduce the risk of developing severe rotavirus gastroenteritis by around 85-100% and any rotavirus gastroenteritis by around 70%."
Apparently an Australian researcher first described rotaviruses as the cause of infant gastroenteritis in 1973. The virus particles are shed in faecal matter and easily transferred by contamination of hands and objects, particularly in day care centres and places frequented by children.
Almost every child will suffer at least one infection by the time they are three years old. ... In Australia, it is estimated that there are approximately 10,000 hospitalisations due to rotavirus in children less than 5 years of age each year, with rotavirus accounting for around half the hospitalisations for any acute gastroenteritis in this age group. ... In addition to hospitalisations, an estimated 115,000 children under 5 years of age visit a GP, and 22,000 children require an Emergency Department visit... Rotavirus infections follow a seasonal pattern in temperate Australia with peak incidence in mid to late winter.
(NCIRS Fact Sheet)
There was some concern about an earlier version of the Rotavirus vaccine (RotaShield) causing intestinal blockage in children, and as a result, the vaccines now available "have undergone some of the largest and most stringent testing in clinical trials ever seen for any vaccine." (NCIRS Fact Sheet) The effects with the earlier vaccine were strongest if the first dose was given over the age of 3 months, and for this reason, the clinical trials of the current vaccines were limited to the age ranges mentioned in the next paragraph. The current vaccines are quite different in composition to the earlier vaccine, and the age limits may eventually be relaxed after further testing.
There are two rotavirus vaccines available - RotaTeq and Rotarix. We used Rotarix as it only requires 2 doses instead of 3. The doses are given at 2 and 4 months of age. The interval between doses should be no less than 4 weeks. However, it must be noted that there are age limits, so don't leave it too late - the first dose must be given between 6 & 14 weeks old and the second between 10 & 24 weeks old (remembering the 4 week waiting period between doses).
I have also found a report of problems following vaccination with the RotaTeq vaccine. I have not been able to find anything negative about Rotarix, and since it requires less dosing and is the one I have personal experience with, I recommend using Rotarix if you are given a choice.
After receiving the vaccine, there is a slightly increased risk (1-3%) of baby having diarrhoea or vomiting in the following week, but clinical trials show no difference in the incidence of fever, irritability and other adverse effects between babies receiving the vaccine & those receiving a placebo. Wombat had no reaction at all to this vaccine (which is more than I can say for the needle-based vaccines he has had.)
The vaccine will not prevent diarrhoea and vomiting caused by other infectious agents but is very good at preventing severe diarrhoea and vomiting caused by rotavirus, which causes about half of all episodes of hospitalised gastroenteritis in infants and young children. ... Children who receive the rotavirus vaccine are less likely to be hospitalised, visit the Emergency Department, or see a doctor for gastroenteritis.
(NCIRS Fact Sheet)
The best news is, if you are Australian, you won't have to pay for it like we did! Starting in July 2007, the two brands of Rotavirus vaccine will be included on the National Immunisation Program.
All babies born from 1 May 2007 will be eligible for the free vaccine. Two or three doses, depending on the brand administered, will generally be given at the same time as other immunisations at around two, four and six months of age.
Australian Government media release
For more information on the Rotarix brand of the Rotavirus vaccine, visit GlaxoSmithKline Australia.
