Q. My preemie son has his four month appointment this month and I know I am going to meet resistance from the Pediatrician about wanting to postpone his vaccinations. Is there anything printed that I can take with me that supports the decision to delay beyond the schedule used in the US? I’ve been planning to vaccinate him on a modified schedule (two shots each time instead of four), leaving out the Varivax, Prevnar and the Hepatitis B.
A. All of the conventional medical literature says that preemies should be vaccinated on schedule and not adjusted for gestational age. I disagree because the immune system should be allowed to mature. If a doc believes in vaccines, why not get the “most bang for your buck?” That is, get the maximum antibody response and protection for each vaccine given. There is nothing written, that I know of, to support this.