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Immunization

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Know what you are getting into if you choose not to vaccinate your children

Many diseases have not been common since our grandparents (or great GPs) were in school. Most people are no longer aware of how the diseases are spread, or how to recognize them. These diseases have not completely disappeared and therefore could be spread from other countries or travelers coming back to our region.

When anyone is not up to date with vaccines, it is important to 

  1. Be aware of potential risk of exposure – locally and when travelling
  2. Recognize symptoms of these diseases
  3. Seek medical help
  4. Inform health care providers about vaccination history to help with diagnosis and treatment when you:
    • visit your child’s health care provider or any clinic
    • call 911
    • ride in an ambulance
    • visit a hospital emergency room
  5. Prevent spread to others who may be at risk – individuals who are very young, or pregnant, or elderly, or immune compromised
  6. Keep a vaccination record easily accessible, so that you can report exactly which vaccines your child has received.

Informed decision making includes having the information about what could happen if you

  • Do immunize
  • Don’t complete all of the doses of a vaccine series 
  • Do not immunize at all

Many vaccine-preventable diseases have no treatment or cure. This is why we are providing information about each of the diseases linked to the required vaccines. Check out the disease below so you can identify these diseases in yourself and your family. Your child can catch diseases from people who do not have any symptoms. 

WHAT IS IT? 

  • Infection caused by tetanus spores found in the soil. 
  • Enters the body through an opening in the skin – small cuts or punctures
  • It does not spread from one person to another. 

SYMPTOMS

  • Muscles may lock in one place or go into spasm (get very tight) and is very painful.
  • Jaw is often the first body part to be affected. 

TREATMENT – tetanus anti-toxin

POSSIBLE OUTCOMES

  • If not treated or late receiving treatment – can be fatal

WHAT IS IT? 

  • Spread by coughing and sneezing or indirectly by touching contaminated objects

SYMPTOMS 

  • Fever and chills.
  • Sore throat, hoarseness, painful swallowing.
  • Croup-like (barking) cough, Drooling (suggests airway blockage is about to occur)
  • Bluish coloration of the skin, Bloody, watery drainage from nose.
  • Breathing problems, including difficulty breathing, fast breathing, high-pitched breathing sound

TREATMENT – anti-toxin

POSSIBLE OUTCOMES

  • Bacteria produces a poison (toxin) that kills cells in the lining of the throat and causes serious breathing problems. It can attack the heart, nerves and kidneys
  • Can be fatal, babies are most at risk

WHAT IS IT?

  • Spread by coughing and sneezing – droplets enter your respiratory system

SYMPTOMS

  • Coughing, violently and rapidly, until all the air has left the lungs and a person is forced to inhale, causing a “whooping” sound.
  • Sneezing, Nasal discharge, Sore, watery eyes,
  • Fever.
  • Lips, tongue, and nailbeds may turn blue during coughing spells.

TREATMENT – antibiotics to prevent spreading disease to others, but does not stop the coughing.

  • Pertussis bacteria release poisons (toxins), which damage cilia and cause your airways to swell. This and increased mucus causes severe coughing.

POSSIBLE OUTCOMES

  • Coughing episodes can continue for weeks or even months
  • Babies are at highest risk of hospitalization

WHAT IS IT?

  • Spread by person-to-person contact – The virus lives in an infected person’s throat and intestines
  • Virus enters body through the mouth
  • Virus can contaminate food and water in unsanitary conditions

SYMPTOMS

  • fever, sore throat, headache, muscle aches and pains, drowsiness, loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, stomach pain and constipation.

TREATMENT – There is no cure for paralytic polio and no specific treatment.

POSSIBLE OUTCOMES

  • It can cause meningitis
  • It can cause permanent paralysis.

WHAT IS IT?

  • Spread by ‘carriers’ through sharing drinks, coughing and kissing or by lengthy contact (same household)
  • Bacteria live in the back of their nose and throat of carriers without making them ill. When the bacteria invade the body they cause meningococcal disease.
  • Once bacteria invade the body, may develop into Meningitis or Septicemia

COMMON SYMPTOMS: Fever/chills, Headache, Stiff neck

Additional symptoms: Nausea, Vomiting. eyes being more sensitive to light, confusion, cold hands and feet, severe aches or pain in the muscles, joints, chest, or abdomen 

TREATMENT – antibiotics

  • Additional treatments may include breathing support, medications to treat low blood pressure, surgery to remove dead tissue
  • Wound care for parts of the body with damaged skin

POSSIBLE OUTCOMES

  • Can be fatal or cause loss of limb(s), deafness, brain damage

WHAT IS IT? 

  • Spread by close contact with someone who has chickenpox or shingles (droplets and open blisters)

SYMPTOMS

  •     An itchy rash of blisters
  •     Fever
  •     Headache
  •     Feeling tired

TREATMENT 

  • age 12 and older, oral acyclovir or valacyclovir (antiviral drug that slows the spread of the virus)

COMPLICATIONS

  • Skin infections
  • Dehydration (loss of body fluids)
  • Pneumonia (an infection in the lungs)
  • Encephalitis (swelling of the brain)

POSSIBLE OUTCOMES

  • Can be life-threatening, in babies under 12 months, adolescents, adults, pregnant women and people with weakened immune systems.

WHAT IS IT?

  • Spread by infected person who coughs or sneezes. Can stay in the air for up to 2 hours – very contagious.
  • Infected person may not show any symptoms
  • Can also be transmitted by touching your eyes, nose, or mouth after touching an infected surface

SYMPTOMS

  • fever, a red blotchy rash that starts on the face and spreads down over the body, red watery eyes, and cough.

TREATMENT – for complications only

  • Call ahead before going to see Dr or emergency room. Do not enter without wearing a mask. Expect to be put in isolation to protect others

POSSIBLE OUTCOMES

  • Pneumonia, encephalitis, and could be fatal. 

WHAT IS IT?

  • Spread by droplets from the nose or throat of someone with mumps
  • can be through kissing, sharing a toy that has been in the mouth, sharing a glass

SYMPTOMS

  • fever, aches and pains, headaches and swelling of the salivary glands around the jaw and cheeks. 

Severe symptoms 

  • High fever.
  • Stiff neck, Severe headache, Seizures.
  • Confusion.
  • Stomach pain, Vomiting.
  • Can cause swelling in the testicles, ovaries, pancreas and brain

TREATMENT – symptom relief only

POSSIBLE OUTCOMES

  • Mumps can cause meningitis or encephalitis (swelling in the brain). This can lead to seizures, hearing loss, or could be fatal.
  • Can cause sterility in males

WHAT IS IT?

  • Spread by an infected person who coughs or sneezes. It can also spread by direct contact with infected mucus from the nose and throat. 
  • Can be passed on from pregnant women to their unborn children through the bloodstream.
  • Contagious up to 1 week before rash appears

SYMPTOMS

  • low-grade fever, sore throat, and a rash that starts on the face and spreads to the rest of the body
  • Adults may get headache and pink eye

TREATMENT – symptom relief only

POSSIBLE OUTCOMES

  • If a pregnant woman is infected, can cause still birth or miscarriage. 
  • Developing baby may be harmed:
    • Growth delays
    • Cataracts
    • Deafness
    • Congenital heart defects
    • Brain development and learning

Additional Reading About Vaccination

How Vaccines Protect Us

Immunizations, also known as vaccinations, are a safe and effective way to protect against many serious diseases. Vaccines work with your body’s immune system to prevent serious illness and possible long-term consequences from the disease.

When there is an outbreak of a vaccine-preventable disease in your community

  • Unvaccinated children and their families may have to be isolated or quarantined during disease outbreaks.
  • Unless your child has a medical condition that prevents them from getting immunized, it may not be too late to get protection by getting vaccinated. Ask your health care provider if your child can still receive a vaccination.
  • If there are cases (or even a single case) of a vaccine-preventable disease in your community, you may be asked to take your child out of school, daycare or other activities, such as playgroups or sports. You will be informed when it is safe for your child to return. Be prepared to keep your child home for several days, or up to several weeks.
  • Learn about the disease and how it is spread. It may not be possible to avoid being exposed to it. For example, measles is so contagious that even after an infected person has left a room, the virus remains on surfaces and in the air for up to two hours. An unvaccinated person could get measles just by entering that room.
  • Each disease is different, so talk with your child’s health care provider to help you understand when your child is no longer at risk of getting the disease.

If you know your child is exposed to a vaccine-preventable disease for which they have not been vaccinated

  • Learn the early signs of the disease.
  • Get medical help quickly if your child or any family members develop early signs of the disease.
  • Be sure to call ahead to let your health care provider know that you suspect your child may have a vaccine-preventable disease. This way, medical staff can take simple precautions to prevent the disease from spreading to others.
  • Follow recommendations to isolate your child from others, including family members (especially babies, pregnant individuals and people with weak immune systems), by staying at home; contact your local public health unit for important additional guidance. Most vaccine-preventable diseases can be very dangerous to babies who are too young to be fully vaccinated (less than 12 months old), or children who are not vaccinated due to certain medical conditions.
  • For some vaccine-preventable diseases, there are medicines available to treat infected people, as well as medicines to keep people they come in contact with from getting the disease.

School-Aged Children

Children who attend school in Ontario must have proof of immunization against certain diseases, unless a valid exemption is provided. As a parent, it is your responsibility to report your child’s immunization status to your local public health unit; your health care provider does not send this information for you.

Children who are exempt from immunization are at increased risk and may be removed from school during a disease outbreak.

Requirements for Attending School – Leeds, Grenville and Lanark District Health Unit

Before You Travel with Your Child

  • Review the Government of Canada website before travelling to learn about possible disease risks, and vaccines that will protect your family.
  • If an unimmunized person develops a vaccine-preventable disease while travelling, to prevent transmission to others, they should not travel by plane, train or bus until a health care provider determines the person is no longer contagious.

Read or download the print-ready PDF version of this information.