Vulnerable kids at disney

[danikoski]

I'm about to breakdown crying. I just read that there are now three cases of measles in Pinellas County. I feel sick to my stomach. Our trip is in 4 weeks. This feels too close to home and I was already rattled by the one case. We have vacation insurance but our final payment is due tomorrow. The timing is unbelievable. I feel cursed. I've been watching the news for measles all summer and there had never been more than one case every month or so in distant states. This seems like it's going to grow more. Florida is the only state I've seen that is offering almost no infirmation. They reported after the first case that they expected it to be an isolated thing. I guess not. Since families that don't vaccinate often have liked minded peers, I think this is going to spread a lot more and I won't be able to know anything.

I know I'm highly anxious and I don't know how much is just my own fear. I could really use your honest opinions. Would you still go to Disney World with an unvaccinated older infant?

Sitting and worry about it is not going to help anyone. Call the doctor. Get their advice on vaccinating or not. Then from that, make a decision. Vaccinate/don't cancel, don't vaccinate/don't cancel, don't vaccinate/cancel. You have to decide. The indecision will eat you alive, and you will feel so much better once you make choice. But first step, call the doctor. Otherwise, you will not be making an informed decision, and that has the potential to eat at you too.
If it was me, I'd just get the twelve month old vaccinated at a year. I wouldn't worry about the Tdap with the five year old.

 

[jalapeno_pretzel]

Please let us know what your pediatrician says.

 

[StitchesGr8Fan]

I took my immune-deficient 10 month old at the height of flu season this January. Was cautious about hand washing, brought all his meds just in case, and took the usual precautions. He was fine.

 

[DisneyAbsolutely]

Please let us know what your pediatrician says.

Thanks everyone. Our pediatrician said that they can offer an MMR now but they would have to give another one at 12 months too. That feels overkill to me and the doc wasn't able to say much more than that. I see why, he can't really predict the situation. I'm crestfallen. We didn't do much this summer in anticipation of really living it up at Disney. I don't want to let anxiety control me but I sense that this will become a bigger outbreak. We are going to wait a week or 2 but it looks like a reschedule unless information becomes available that assures me this is not a threat.

 

[Betty Rohrer]

I'm glad to hear that.
Yes I want to bring all of those supplies. My worry is that Lysol wipes smell so strong and I'm not sure how much I can get away with in public haha. Did you notice if anyone was bothered by the smells or cared? I feel a little self conscious.

just get the unscented ones which will not scent the air and I am one who has scent problems

 

[Betty Rohrer]

Even the health of others around them? So if you cause someone else to have an asthma attack from spraying all over too bad so sad? People can be health conscience and courteous. No spraying around food or in close quarters please!

for me spraying near me would not cause me an asthma attack but cause me to not be able to breath as in needing oxygen and EMTs. How would you feel to end someone else trip with a trip to ER if not worse. and I am talking about being on other side of dining room so no I would not be courteous to some one spraying

 

[Childs1stTime2Disney]

Thanks everyone. Our pediatrician said that they can offer an MMR now but they would have to give another one at 12 months too. That feels overkill to me and the doc wasn't able to say much more than that. I see why, he can't really predict the situation. I'm crestfallen. We didn't do much this summer in anticipation of really living it up at Disney. I don't want to let anxiety control me but I sense that this will become a bigger outbreak. We are going to wait a week or 2 but it looks like a reschedule unless information becomes available that assures me this is not a threat.

In our case, our pediatrician advised us to get the MMR/CP combo vaccine at 12 months, about 2 months before the trip. My child developed a fever 9 days after the combo vaccine (very common, absolutely was that causing the fever). Our pediatrician is very lax, but this he felt strongly about. I am sorry, I personally could never have a good time if I was worrying.

 

[KrazeeK120]

In our case, our pediatrician advised us to get the MMR/CP combo vaccine at 12 months, about 2 months before the trip. My child developed a fever 9 days after the combo vaccine (very common, absolutely was that causing the fever). Our pediatrician is very lax, but this he felt strongly about. I am sorry, I personally could never have a good time if I was worrying.

The fever may also have been caused by a virus your kid picked up.

 

[halfpintpeggy]

Thanks everyone. Our pediatrician said that they can offer an MMR now but they would have to give another one at 12 months too. That feels overkill to me and the doc wasn't able to say much more than that. I see why, he can't really predict the situation. I'm crestfallen. We didn't do much this summer in anticipation of really living it up at Disney. I don't want to let anxiety control me but I sense that this will become a bigger outbreak. We are going to wait a week or 2 but it looks like a reschedule unless information becomes available that assures me this is not a threat.

Honestly? It sounds as if your anxiety regarding this situation would ruin your trip. My advice at this point would be to reschedule or cancel, & decide upon a vacation perhaps closer to home which wouldn’t cause so much stress for you. Think of going somewhere where you will be relaxed, at ease, & able to enjoy yourself!

 

[Anna H]

for me spraying near me would not cause me an asthma attack but cause me to not be able to breath as in needing oxygen and EMTs. How would you feel to end someone else trip with a trip to ER if not worse. and I am talking about being on other side of dining room so no I would not be courteous to some one spraying

I agree that spraying is generally a bad idea but we wouldn't need sprays as much if more people didn't go around sick. That could put my child in the ER too. If my child got sick with anything, even while at Disney, I would never expose him to a public place. For his sake and everyone else's. Since we likely won't be getting that courtesy from others, I'll be sanitizing everything I can get away with. I will be mindful of not using sprays but I'll probably be using wipes that work.

 

[lpereira]

I don't think many families from Venezuela go to Disney World. Venezuala is a very different country than Brazil or Argentina, and is in a very different economic condition. I wouldn't worry unless an outbreak actually happened in Florida.

But certainly, bring anti-bacterial wipes & use them a lot. Not just to protect against diptheria or measles, as those are both very unlikely to be present, but to protect against the much more likely specters of cold, strep and flu germs.

thank you for pointing this out. There are roughly 2,400 cases in 2018 in North America, Central America, and South America. The bulk of them in Venezuela.
US measles tend to come from people from the US traveling to measles prone areas without vaccinating. Europe btw has over 10,000 2018 cases.
In any event measles is airborne and can hang in the air for hours after an infected person passes through.
I would still take my kids to Disney. Bring the wipes though for all those lovely oral fecal viruses.

 

[lpereira]

I don't want to be a Debbie downer either but I would personally probably delay. We had a trip planned for when my son was 6 months. Low and behold that was when the measles Disneyland thing occurred. My pediatrician begged me to reschedule until after he got the vaccination (at 12 months) and we went when he was 13 months. You cannot protect yourself against measles. Do some research. One drop in the air can infect many people and it may not be too serious for adults but it can be for children.

This summer there has been an outbreak in Brazil where over 1,000 people have contracted the virus and some have died. Many Brazilians travel to WDW. There has also been a case in Tampa. My son is now 3 1/2 and has been vaccinated but is due for his booster at 4. We have a trip coming up next week. Since he has already been vaccinated I don't think we will cancel because the vaccine is good through ages 4-6 but I have contemplated it and my friend who works fo the CDC in monitoring the situation for me. This is just my opinion and it is not an pro/anti vax sort of thing. To me no trip is worth chancing my son getting sick.

Please talk to your doctor and then decide. I am waiting for a call back for my Ped as I type.

The Brazilian measles cases are almost entirely limited to indigeneous peoples living on (and over) the border between Brazil and Venezuela. These populations are exempt from vaccination laws unlike the rest of the population. There are no exemptions like in the US. Failure to vaccinate is a jailable offense.

 

[Childs1stTime2Disney]

The fever may also have been caused by a virus your kid picked up.

Definitely not, can say almost for certainty. The combo vaccination actually has a higher rate of fever (and seizure) around day 8 or 9, and that is exactly when it happened. My daughter is over 1.5 now and has never had a fever, never been ill to this day even to be honest (other than this incident). Exactly on day 9 after the vaccination, she developed a fever which went up to 102 and was gone in one day. She does not go to daycare and had not been to crowded or many public places by 12 months. It was surely a vaccination reaction, it was her first and only so far, live virus vaccine. I expected it and I am not knocking the vaccine, that is how the immune system responds to a vaccine, esp a combo live virus one.

 

[Betty Rohrer]

I agree that spraying is generally a bad idea but we wouldn't need sprays as much if more people didn't go around sick. That could put my child in the ER too. If my child got sick with anything, even while at Disney, I would never expose him to a public place. For his sake and everyone else's. Since we likely won't be getting that courtesy from others, I'll be sanitizing everything I can get away with. I will be mindful of not using sprays but I'll probably be using wipes that work.

use unscented ones if possible for others with allergries

 

[smiths02]

One reason that I never planned a trip to major place like Disneyworld (or Disneyland) before my children were a year old is because of not being vaccinated yet. Also, illnesses in general are much more serious at that age.

However, I probably would not let it keep me from going if I had a planned trip.

 

[2019TripIdeas]

On account of the 5 year old, I wouldn't worry- what is your longterm plan for him in terms of dTap? Was his reaction anaphalaxyis or is it something you'll finish the vaccination schedule on eventually? I'm assuming you won't withhold him from going to school or stores or any of the random places he could pick something up? I feel like the risk is SO miniscule that you can't live your life in fear.

In terms of the baby, is he/she healthy? I was minimally more cautious with my youngest as he'd been in the NICU and didn't make the weight requirement for a few of the early shots so we "had" to delay per pediatrician, etc- for the first few months. By 6 months and when he was caught up on "normal" vaccine schedule, I dropped that worry. With my other two I wouldn't have really thought twice about bringing them anywhere before they'd received vaccinations. I did bring my middle child before the 12 month shots to Disneyland [and I'm thinking this was a few years after the Disneyland measles business- he was 11 months].

We follow a way more relaxed approach about germs- I am fully okay with my kids getting minor childhood illnesses and building up their immune systems. Our pediatrician takes this approach too, and all is well.

If your anxiety about germs rules your life, I would likely seek some help. Worrying about this kind of stuff can really take over and I imagine it's tough to be thinking through this all the time. When you put it in perspective, if you're worrying about the likelihood of your 1 child (out of the thousands at Disneyland that week) coming into contact with one of the few people an hour plus away and then contracting a disease from that person, it seems REALLY REALLY unlikely.

 

[Dis703]

My kids were not vaccinated for medical reasons at that age. We opted to wait to go to places like Disney until they were at least 2 years old in part because of those worries. I'm definitely a germaphobe and so as much as I can to limit exposure with cleaning hands and wiping tables, etc.

There are far more people visiting Disney without being fully vaccinated than you would ever realize. In part because different countries (and even states) have different vaccine requirements and schedules and in part because of people delaying/avoiding as well, as the fact most adults are undervaccinated. Outbreaks happen but it's still rare. As for your 5 year old, Pertussis is the main concern usually as it's still out there. But it's most dangerous for infants under 6 months. While not a pleasant illness, older children and adults typically get over it without too many issues.

 

[Tksolomom]

On account of the 5 year old, I wouldn't worry- what is your longterm plan for him in terms of dTap? Was his reaction anaphalaxyis or is it something you'll finish the vaccination schedule on eventually? I'm assuming you won't withhold him from going to school or stores or any of the random places he could pick something up? I feel like the risk is SO miniscule that you can't live your life in fear.

In terms of the baby, is he/she healthy? I was minimally more cautious with my youngest as he'd been in the NICU and didn't make the weight requirement for a few of the early shots so we "had" to delay per pediatrician, etc- for the first few months. By 6 months and when he was caught up on "normal" vaccine schedule, I dropped that worry. With my other two I wouldn't have really thought twice about bringing them anywhere before they'd received vaccinations. I did bring my middle child before the 12 month shots to Disneyland [and I'm thinking this was a few years after the Disneyland measles business- he was 11 months].

We follow a way more relaxed approach about germs- I am fully okay with my kids getting minor childhood illnesses and building up their immune systems. Our pediatrician takes this approach too, and all is well.

If your anxiety about germs rules your life, I would likely seek some help. Worrying about this kind of stuff can really take over and I imagine it's tough to be thinking through this all the time. When you put it in perspective, if you're worrying about the likelihood of your 1 child (out of the thousands at Disneyland that week) coming into contact with one of the few people an hour plus away and then contracting a disease from that person, it seems REALLY REALLY unlikely.

This is me too. I always took my babies out and didn’t worry excessively about germs. I took normal precautions, but both my pediatrician and I are of the belief that exposure to germs builds up your immune system. Of course if your children have compromised immune systems that is another matter.

 

[Betty Rohrer]

Hi guys. I'll be staying at Disney next month with my 10 month old and almost 5 year old. My baby is not old enough for the measles vaccine and my son had an allergic reaction to the DtaP at 4 months old so is not able to have more. I was reading about some Measles AND Diptheria outbreaks near South and central America. I wonder if that could potentially affect Florida with the frequent travelers from that area. We got vacation insurance and now I'm worrying that it's a mistake to go. Would you consider canceling for these reasons?? I'm feeling bad for not thinking of it before. My baby is so young and my boy is not protected from Diptheria. . Our friend took her 6 month old so I guess I felt envious. Idk. Tyvm

one of major children's hospitals in our area just put out an alert for anyone visiting ER on a day because of measles and this is in Pa so it can happen anywhere