Chickenpox vaccine for nursing mothers

The virus used in the chickenpox vaccine does not enter a mother's breast milk or pass to feeding infants. This means that nursing mothers who are susceptible to chickenpox do not need to wait to get the vaccine.Although chickenpox is often thought of as a childhood illness, adults can get it too and usually it is much more serious than in kids. Because chickenpox can be especially harmful during pregnancy, the vaccine is recommended for susceptible, non-pregnant women of childbearing age. Ideally, vaccination is given before pregnancy, but, in reality, many susceptible women are not identified until after they've given birth.Based on reports of certain viruses being excreted in breast milk, there has been concern about giving the chickenpox vaccine to breastfeeding mothers. However, it is not known whether the vaccine virus did find its way into breast milk or even if exposing babies to the virus was harmful. To investigate this, researchers from the Group Health Cooperative in Seattle, USA, tested for the virus in blood and milk samples obtained from 12 women who received two doses of the vaccine while breastfeeding. In addition, blood samples were obtained from their infants and tested for the virus. It was found that none of the 217 milk samples obtained after vaccination showed any evidence of the virus. Moreover, there were no signs of the virus in blood samples taken from the babies. Although, the possibility of excretion of the virus (into breast milk) cannot be excluded, the findings suggest that vaccination should not be delayed in breast-feeding women who are known to be susceptible to chickenpox. Offering the first vaccine dose before a susceptible woman is discharged after delivery and the second dose at the postpartum follow-up visit would provide early protection for the mother and would facilitate compliance with the two-dose vaccine schedule.