Vaccinations and Psoriasis

[Fred]

I was talking to another member the other day about avoiding Live Vaccines whilst using Stelara for the treatment of psoriasis.

The reason being that all the Bio treatments recommend you avoid Live Vaccines because the Bio's weaken your immune system, but it got me thinking that maybe all people with psoriasis should avoid Live Vaccines. Ok the Bio's do weaken your immune system, but psoriasis is in itself an autoimmune disorder.

So we are all at a higher risk of infection, and taking a Live Vaccine could be to much for our systems to handle. A Live Vaccine is just that, it still has a tiny bit of life in it and the idea is to inject a person with it to make the body's immune system fight it. This is great for those with a strong immune system and it will stop us getting something like Polio, Measles, Etc. But what if we take a Live Vaccine whilst on a Bio treatment or those of us with bad psoriasis? could it cause our bodies to not be able to act and we could end up with the very thing that the vaccination was trying to protect us from!

Live Vaccines include but are not limited to:
Measles vaccine, Mumps vaccine, Rubella vaccine, Live attenuated influenza vaccine (the seasonal flu nasal spray and the 2009 H1N1 flu nasal spray), Chicken pox vaccine, Polio vaccine (Sabin), Rotavirus vaccine, Yellow fever vaccine, Rabies vaccine, Bacillus Calmette-Guerin vaccine, Typhoid vaccine, and Epidemic typhus vaccine.

*Note some of the above especially Flu and Rabies are available in Live and Killed Vaccines.

What do you think, should we avoid Live Vaccines?  

[jiml]

My thinking is that, yes psoriasis is an autoimmune disease, but that doesn't necessarily mean that our immune system is lowered, in fact it is overactive I believe ,attacking cells it shouldn't causing the skin to overgrow.
So unless I'm told that my immune system is down which can be seen from blood test results, I will continue to have my Flu jab whether it's live or not.
That's my thinking but I could be way off course

[Fred]

My thinking is that, yes psoriasis is an autoimmune disease, but that doesn't necessarily mean that our immune system is lowered, in fact it is overactive I believe attacking cells it shouldn't causing the skin to overgrow.
So unless I'm told that my immune system is down which can be seen from blood test results, I will continue to have my Flu jab whether it's live or not.
That's my thinking but I could be way off course

Mmmmmmmmm not sure of your theory about over-active, yes your body is over-active but that is your immune system fighting something.

It's a bit like a boxer in the ring if he is doing well an you put another opponent in, surely the extra work load he is putting in will make the boxer weaker? So his ability to keep fighting is reduced, that's the way I see it.

I have never had the Flu jab I always refuse it, but you are probably being given the Dead Flu Vaccine as I think most flu jabs are dead vaccines these days.

I'm not that up on Bloods, but aren't there lot's of different results that show up problems with the immune system? You are only tested for some things as you are on Fumaderm, so you may not know there is something else going on. On my last dermatology appointment they added another three things to my blood test, so I don't know if a weak immune problem would always show up unless tested for.

Plus we all do agree Psoriasis is an Autoimmune disease, but it's not checked for confirmation via a blood test.  

[AmandaL]

I was talking to another member the other day about avoiding Live Vaccines whilst using Stelara for the treatment of psoriasis.

The reason being that all the Bio treatments recommend you avoid Live Vaccines because the Bio's weaken your immune system, but it got me thinking that maybe all people with psoriasis should avoid Live Vaccines. Ok the Bio's do weaken your immune system, but psoriasis is in itself an autoimmune disorder.

So we are all at a higher risk of infection, and taking a Live Vaccine could be to much for our systems to handle. A Live Vaccine is just that, it still has a tiny bit of life in it and the idea is to inject a person with it to make the body's immune system fight it. This is great for those with a strong immune system and it will stop us getting something like Polio, Measles, Etc. But what if we take a Live Vaccine whilst on a Bio treatment or those of us with bad psoriasis? could it cause our bodies to not be able to act and we could end up with the very thing that the vaccination was trying to protect us from!

Live Vaccines include but are not limited to:
Measles vaccine, Mumps vaccine, Rubella vaccine, Live attenuated influenza vaccine (the seasonal flu nasal spray and the 2009 H1N1 flu nasal spray), Chicken pox vaccine, Polio vaccine (Sabin), Rotavirus vaccine, Yellow fever vaccine, Rabies vaccine, Bacillus Calmette-Guerin vaccine, Typhoid vaccine, and Epidemic typhus vaccine.

*Note some of the above especially Flu and Rabies are available in Live and Killed Vaccines.

What do you think, should we avoid Live Vaccines?  

I could be wrong, but I think if you're on immunosuppressants, you can't have some vaccines such as Polio. I always get the flu vaccine though. I think you're asking for more problems because if you get the flu and you're on medications, you're more than likely going to end up in hospital.

[Turnedlight]

I asked my doc about a hep a vaccine to go on holiday, whilst on mtx. I wanted to know if it was a live vaccine and if I should risk it - she didn't even look it up, she just said I should have it. As it turns out, I'm not going there (Bulgaria) after all. They seem to think you are less at risk from the vaccine than actually catching the illness.
I have now come off mtx, I never took them up on the flu jab.

[Caroline]

Plus we all do agree Psoriasis is an Autoimmune disease, but it's not checked for confirmation via a blood test.  

Eh.. How do you check if you have psoriasis? And than I am thinking of the PsA variant?
Even dermatolist mostly first think that psoriasis is some kind of exzema at first.
As far as I know there is nothing in your blood that can definitely prove that someone has psoriasis or PsA. At least that is what my doctor said. The diagnoses is derived from all kinds of other symptoms.

So... No it is not checked for confirmation, because it can't be.

[Fred]

Plus we all do agree Psoriasis is an Autoimmune disease, but it's not checked for confirmation via a blood test.  

Eh.. How do you check if you have psoriasis? And than I am thinking of the PsA variant?
Even dermatolist mostly first think that psoriasis is some kind of exzema at first.
As far as I know there is nothing in your blood that can definitely prove that someone has psoriasis or PsA. At least that is what my doctor said. The diagnoses is derived from all kinds of other symptoms.

So... No it is not checked for confirmation, because it can't be.  

Exactly what I said.  

[D Foster]

What test do they do to differentiate between PsA and other types of arthritis ,I thought that they did it via a blood test ?

I have the flu vaccine and the pneumonia but I cannot have the one for shingles because that one is a live one.

[Fred]

What test do they do to differentiate between PsA and other types of arthritis ,I thought that they did it via a blood test ?

I have the flu vaccine and the pneumonia but I cannot have the one for shingles because that one is a live one.

I've never had a blood test for psoriasis or psoriatic arthritis, I didn't think it was distinguishable by a blood test but I could be wrong.

Yes there are dead versions of Flu and Pneumonia, I get offered them every year even though I always refuse. But yes Shingles is Live so best avoided especially for you as you are on Stelara.

[D Foster]

What test do they do to differentiate between PsA and other types of arthritis ,I thought that they did it via a blood test ?

I have the flu vaccine and the pneumonia but I cannot have the one for shingles because that one is a live one.

I've never had a blood test for psoriasis or psoriatic arthritis, I didn't think it was distinguishable by a blood test but I could be wrong.

Yes there are dead versions of Flu and Pneumonia, I get offered them every year even though I always refuse. But yes Shingles is Live so best avoided especially for you as you are on Stelara.

I am not 100% sure as I cannot remember exactly what happened when they tested me to find out what type of arthritis I had but I know that they were able to distinguish between the types and tell me what I had.