|
You did a good job of explaining vaccination in
general, Lisa, but I'd add a couple of things. First off, ALL vaccines
have risks--just some have higher risks than others. Different adjuvants
have different rates of reactivity, as do some of the actual antigens in the
vaccine. Furthermore, all horses have very individual immune systems, all
of which react somewhat differently to vaccines. Hence, different vaccines
also have different rates of efficacy (how well and effectively they work)--none
are 100% (although some are close) and some are far less efficacious than
that. In ALL cases, one weighs the risks of vaccination against the
benefits. Example--even though the risk may be small, there is no point
assuming it to vaccinate for a disease that only occurs in Africa (assuming one
lives in North America--should clarify that, as we have some correspondents here
from other continents), from which neither your horse nor the public will
benefit, unless of course one is planning to go compete there. And if a
vaccine has a high rate of reactivity and a low efficacy (strangles, for
instance), there is likewise no reason to vaccinate for it if your horses have
very little chance of being exposed. On the other hand, a vaccine like
strangles is still safer than getting the disease, and even those vaccinated
horses who still contract it get milder cases, so if strangles is endemic in
your neighborhood, or where you compete, it behooves you to vaccinate.
You mentioned public health--and that is a biggie
that many people don't take into consideration. We don't see too many
diseases of horses that are a threat to people, but WNV is one of them, as is
rabies. Vaccination of dogs and cats for rabies is one of the main
defenses for the human population, as the companion animal species are often the
link by which people are exposed. Likewise, we see such diseases among
food animals (brucellosis comes to mind, which causes undulant fever in people),
and in some cases actually have state or federally mandated vaccination programs
to ensure the health and safety of the human population. Surrounding
ourselves with a protected animal population goes a long way toward cutting the
risk to people.
Heidi
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Saturday, June 22, 2002 8:09
AM
Subject: Re: [RC] [RC] What do we do if
we suspect our horse has WNV?
I can't speak for the WNV vaccine specifically, but (Susan and Heidi can
correct me if I'm wrong) there is a risk with certain types of vaccines for a
couple of reasons:
|
