Could a live vaccine trigger symptoms?

Hi all! I recently found out that I need to get some live vaccines done – chicken pox, as well as rubella and measles booster. I am a bit worried that doing this could trigger UC symptoms. My doctors don’t think so, and recommend that I get the vaccines. I am not on any immunosuppressants. What has been your experience with live vaccines and UC?

I thought there is a possibility of worsening symptoms because an immune response will be triggered. Sometime when I have a cold, I notice my UC gets worse, so that is my logic.

I've never heard of them doing so. But would you rather get measles, rubella or a UC flare?

This is really starting to slip into that pro vs. antivax nonsense that you see everywhere now. .

I wasn't making it up when I said a vaccine caused one of my flares. It doesn't matter what the science says, my experience was real. My best friend who has Crohn's, when she received a combo hep A/B booster before going to South America, her tongue swelled up 12 hours later and half her face went numb. Shortly after that she had a Crohn's flare. They gave her prednisone and sent her in her merry way. They didn't even record it as a vaccine ADR. So if I'm one case and she is #2 and I am just one person, how many more are there?

As soon as the complement system of inflammation is activated anywhere in the body, it can carry over into any other area. It's why when people get the common cold, they get aches and pains in other parts of their body where they have old injuries or chronic pain. Inflammation begets inflammation. Especially in people with auto immune, the inflammatory system has a poorer ability to differentiate. Cytokines anywhere can mean activation anywhere.

I'm not antivax, but because of my history, I don't get vaccines. The risk of actually catching these diseases in 21st century America is negligible, partly due to herd immunity and partly because of modern sanitation infrastructure. If you don't want to take a risk, no matter how small, then that is your right. You shouldn't let yourself be shamed into a medical procedure. You should get it because you actually want it and have decided it's in your best interest.

If you look up the number of adult cases in the U.S. every year, you would understand why I use the word negligible. I'm not saying that to convince someone to not get vaccinated either, it's more an assessment of risk.

If you don't get vaccinated for chickenpox, you won't be significantly at risk for catching it thanks to herd immunity and sanitation. There are enough people in the world immune to chicken pox that you will be relatively safe. There are lots of adults out there who never had pox as a kid or got vaccinated and they get along just fine. The adults who are at higher risk are ones that work in childcare environments and hospitals.

Things like hepatitis A, tetanus, haemophilus, etc... I'd get vaccinated for those. Hep A is highly contagious and can be transmitted by saliva. Things like the flu, HPV, the MMR... as an adult, I wouldn't bother. The MMR is actually what caused the flare I mentioned above. Now after reading so many anecdotal case reports on what it has done to people - lots going unreported to the CDC - I wouldn't trust the MMR. But that's me.

Good luck in your decision making process and either way I hope your UC gets better.

beave said...
"...a vaccine caused one of my flares..." How does one know that?

post hoc ergo propter hoc logical fallacy.

I was wondering when you'd show up again to make another rude remark about my intelligence.

Predictable behavior from an uncivilized person.

Post hoc ergo propter hoc is the lifeblood of online support groups, sadly.

One word answer, yes. The way vaccines are designed, they can very much trigger an immune reaction (isn't that the goal to begin with)? But the adjuvants are added to hyper that immune response. Due to the quality of the environment that we live in, some are predisposed to the reaction (epigenetic changes). So in theory, it is not necessarily the vaccine component that is triggering the reaction but the adjuvants added to hyper that immune response. And if anyone is interested, the negative effects of the adjuvants are very well documented in the last 30+ years. Pubmed is your friend.

Nowadays, asking any vaccine-related question has become an issue from zealots from both ends of the spectrum, when the answer lies in between. I personally don't care whether you vaccinate or not but It definitely upsets me when so-called anti-vaccine people are attacked. Since I have witnessed the reactions, I strongly believe the reactions should be investigated, just the way we investigate the medication side/negative effects. Vaccines are a great contribution to public welfare and attacking people who are concerned about the reactions doesn't help. It actually backfires because more people get suspicious, even those who have never had or witnessed the reaction. Every so-called anti-vaccine person was once pro-vaccine. Most of the publications only tell you they didn't find any negative effects but I am yet to come across a paper that investigated any negative reaction.

On the other note, I would want vaccines to be subjected to the same methodology that is applied for the approval of the medications but it is not done in that fashion. In our household, we are lucky to have no reactions to any vaccines so far but my then GI did warn me when I was prioritized for H1N1 vaccine rationing. It can trigger the flare, and worse (and I was coming out a year-long flare, with Azathioprine). I vividly remember the discussion on what could go wrong. I took the chance.

Bottom line, there is always a chance. What I would do, take an ice pack with you for shots and try to space the shots by 2 weeks each, i.e. do not take all shots at once. Once you get the shot, put that ice pack at the shot location for a couple of hours. If you are to get the reaction, you will notice clearly within 2 weeks.