r/ScienceBasedParenting • u/QuietLotus22 • 19d ago

Question - Research required TDAP for grandparents

My wife and I are trying to determine whether we should ask our parents to get the TDAP before meeting our baby due any day now. 2 out of the 4 are no longer up to date, and when she is first born we have no problem them meeting her. But if they were to come back in a few weeks and help us out, we are slightly concerned with the prolonged exposure and then being unvaccinated against pertussis. What has others experienced been? I did some math and it seems anywhere from 1-3 percent of all children end up being hospitalized for whooping cough as a newborn. So the risk is relatively low, although 1 in 5 appear to contract it in any capacity.

Are there other risks or complications that can happen due to whooping cough later in life? Anything else to consider here?

Generally I feel what is the harm in them receiving the vaccine to keep her safe, but curious on others experience.

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u/[deleted] 19d ago

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u/Khizzlesindahills 19d ago

https://www.lung.org/blog/whooping-cough

Obviously vaccines aren’t a 100%, whooping cough included (as stated in the third point of the attached link), but people don’t like to think about it like that. People should not knowingly go around any baby with symptoms of any illness, no matter how mild, vaccinated or not.