Required accinations

[tombonjovi 1]

Hello people.

I am in the process of receiving the required set of vaccination that need to be completed prior to undertaken the full medical as part of the spousal IR-1 (Green Card) Visa process but had have been viewing and receiving mixed information. Is someone able to assist and clarify a few details please.

I have so far received:

Hepatitis A

Hepatitis B (shot 1 of 3)

Measles

Mumps

Rubella

and I will shortly get receiving:

Hepatitis B (shot 2 of 3)

Meningococcal

Pneumococcal

Influenza (once available)

However, I have been informed by my doctor, that the following vaccinations are either not available in the UK or licensed for Adults:

Influenza type b (Hib)

Pertussis

Polio

Rotavirus

Tetanus and diphtheria Toxoid

The final vaccine on the list is Varicella (Chickenpox). The two shots required for this will need to be done privately with a 4 week gap between shot, but on the website regarding what is required (dated 2015) it currently states this is unavailable in UK.

Is someone able to confirm or help with the information above ,in case the are certain further vaccinations required that I am missing and if I do indeed still need to find somewhere to get the Varicella vaccine?

Thank you

T

[JFH 12,191]

Where did you get that list from?

For the London embassy you only need MMR (if you didn't have MMR shots as a baby - when I was a baby they hadn't been introduced as a single vaccine yet so I got MMR from the GP), tetanus, diphtheria, pertussis. If you immigrating bwteeen October and March you need the current flu jab for this flu season.

Pertussis is not routinely available from the NHS. The NHS has stocks of this but they are reserved for pregnant women. You can get it privately before the medical or at Knightsbridge doctors. It comes in a combination vaccine with tetanus and diphtheria boosters.

Chicken pox vaccine not required for UK applicants. If you had the pox as a child, tell them and that will cover you. If you didn't, no biggie. Knightsbridge know this vaccine isn't available anyway. They just take your word for it. They don't even test you to see if you really did have it.

https://travel.state.gov/content/dam/visas/Medical/LND%20-%20London Is the list

Pneumococcal only required if under 5 or over 65

Hep A only required if under 2

Hep B only required if under 18

Meningococcal only required if between 11 and 18

Hib only required if between 2 and 59 months

Rotavirus only required for babies bwteeen 2 and 6 months

Polio also only required for children.

Edited October 5, 2016 by JFH

[JFH 12,191]

*~*~*moved from "CR-1 spouse visa process and procedures" to U.K. regional discussion as relates specifically to medicals in London*~*~*

[tombonjovi 1]

Hi JFH

As an infant I never received the Chicken pox vaccination, though I don't think this was given in the UK event then, but I did contract chicken pox at approximately 9 years of age.

As I premature baby, the doctors advised again almost all shots when I was younger so never received the usual vaccines. The list above can be found on the consular website and can be downloaded as part of the current application process.

I have found another list from USCIS website which I believe is the most up to date and details all the required ones above plus Varicella, so think I may have to get it. Fun times but worth it!

https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/files/form/i-693.pdf

I would imagine if I can present a details list of the major illnesses such as chicken pox that I suffered from as a child, this will help determine what else may or may not be required.

Thanks

Tom

[yuna628 9,700]

Required vaccinations for adults are as follows:

If your doctor should say you don’t need something on this list, remember you have to go by US rules and that differs from UK standards. Here are the shots needed for 19 through 59 years of age:

• Td or Tdap - Tetanus/diptheria/pertussis or get DT, DTP or DtaP and it will be accepted for AOS also. The latest shot must be no longer than 10 years ago or you need a booster. If you have a record of receiving pertussis, then the Td is okay for the booster.
• MMR - (if born in 1957 or later)-Mumps/measles/rubella. It's two doses in your life, but if you get the first dose, and 4 weeks haven't passed by your medical, they will waive the second dose for "insufficient time interval". If you only had one dose as a child, get a second one before the medical.
• Varicella - Not routinely given in the UK . A history of having chickenpox excuses you from the shot. They take your word for it at the visa medical exam.
• Influenza – Required during flu season only, October 1 through March 31. This was a new recommendation dated November 2010 for all ages over 6 months. Older lists will say flu shots for over age 50. It changed. The list on the London embassy website is out of date since 2009. Don’t follow it.

http://www.visajourney.com/forums/topic/474161-london-k1-a-complete-guide-do-not-post-questions-in-thread/ (K1 guide but the required shot list is the exact same)

Again chickenpox is taken at your word. You don't need medical documentation regarding this. You do not need any other shots that are listed on lists intended to super confuse people - only those listed above apply. You do not need a chickenpox vax if you already have had chickenpox.

Edited October 6, 2016 by yuna628

[JFH 12,191]

Hi JFH

As an infant I never received the Chicken pox vaccination, though I don't think this was given in the UK event then, but I did contract chicken pox at approximately 9 years of age.

As I premature baby, the doctors advised again almost all shots when I was younger so never received the usual vaccines. The list above can be found on the consular website and can be downloaded as part of the current application process.

I have found another list from USCIS website which I believe is the most up to date and details all the required ones above plus Varicella, so think I may have to get it. Fun times but worth it!

https://www.uscis.gov/sites/default/files/files/form/i-693.pdf

I would imagine if I can present a details list of the major illnesses such as chicken pox that I suffered from as a child, this will help determine what else may or may not be required.

Thanks

Tom

I don't think anyone in the U.K has ever had a varicella vaccination. It just doesn't exist here. I moved to the UK when I was 25 (dual nationality - British by birth due to one side of my parentage) and I don't think I had a varicella vaccine either as a child even overseas. I did have the chicken pox when I was 7 and that's enough for the London embassy to tick that box.

I can assure you do not need all those others. The list on the website is ALL of the vaccines but doesn't specify which age groups should get which ones. The link I posted breaks the vaccines required down by age groups. Some are only required by infants or children. Some are only required by the elderly. I can assure that everyone here who has gone through the interview and medical exam has only needed the ones Yuna and I have mentioned, with the exception of applicants who are still 18.

[bcking 3,157]

Most of the vaccines you have listed are ones required for childhood but if you haven't received them by the time you are an adult, they aren't required. Polio, Hib, Rota are exclusively childhood vaccines. In the USA as an adult you would receive boosters of Td or TdaP which would contain Tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis. Really the only one as an adult you need/should have is Tetanus unless you are around children in which case getting a booster with pertussis is a good idea (so I'm not sure if that would be required from just immigration).

I'm a Pediatrician so this is coming from the point of view of what is actually medically necessary. I can't guarantee the government doesn't make up its own rules that have no basis in current medical practice.

Not to derail the topic but, anyone know what is routinely done with the BCG vaccine? Will they attempt a PPD and if positive but asymptomatic will they require a recent chest X-ray to confirm no active Tb? Most people assume that with the BCG you will "always be PPD positive" but that isn't actually true and many people who received it as a child could still be negative if they tried having a PPD. I know in hospitals in the US oftentimes we don't even bother trying.

What will Knightsbridge recommend prior to an interview?

[JFH 12,191]

Knightsbridge give everyone a chest x ray

[bcking 3,157]

Knightsbridge give everyone a chest x ray

Didn't realize that. Rather aggressive, especially from a country like the UK. There's about 6,000 cases of Tb a year. The number of CXR's they must do to diagnose a single case is staggeringly high. They're going to have far more false positives than positives if they do everyone that is asymptomatic.

EDIT: I realize you don't make the rules. Just expressing my frustration at pointless expensive medicine. Thanks for letting me know

Edited October 6, 2016 by bcking

[yuna628 9,700]

Most of the vaccines you have listed are ones required for childhood but if you haven't received them by the time you are an adult, they aren't required. Polio, Hib, Rota are exclusively childhood vaccines. In the USA as an adult you would receive boosters of Td or TdaP which would contain Tetanus, diphtheria and pertussis. Really the only one as an adult you need/should have is Tetanus unless you are around children in which case getting a booster with pertussis is a good idea (so I'm not sure if that would be required from just immigration).

I'm a Pediatrician so this is coming from the point of view of what is actually medically necessary. I can't guarantee the government doesn't make up its own rules that have no basis in current medical practice.

Not to derail the topic but, anyone know what is routinely done with the BCG vaccine? Will they attempt a PPD and if positive but asymptomatic will they require a recent chest X-ray to confirm no active Tb? Most people assume that with the BCG you will "always be PPD positive" but that isn't actually true and many people who received it as a child could still be negative if they tried having a PPD. I know in hospitals in the US oftentimes we don't even bother trying.

What will Knightsbridge recommend prior to an interview?

The chest xray is their only test for Tb (my sister in the medical field once asked how they tested for Tb and I said they just did an xray.. I got a funny look). Blood test is only done for STDs/drugs. No TST, PPD or skin test at Knightsbridge. I've seen of course that having a BCG could trigger a false positive for 'latent TB' in a TST according to what I've read. But there would be other tests to run to avoid such positives, like a Tb Blood test. At least so says the CDC here. http://www.cdc.gov/tb/publications/factsheets/prevention/bcg.htm

The only time that should come into play is if the medical was lost from Knightsbridge and then you went to a US civil surgeon to correct it and they used a TST.. and I think I've only seen one person on this forum talk about that... so such false positives must only happen rarely? Otherwise don't worry about Knightsbridge and that unless of course the person had a history of having Tb.

Edited October 6, 2016 by yuna628

[bcking 3,157]

The chest xray is their only test for Tb. Blood test is only done for STDs/drugs. No TST, PPD or skin test at Knightsbridge. I've seen of course that having a BCG could trigger a false positive for 'latent TB' in a TST according to what I've read. But there would be other tests to run to avoid such positives, like a Tb Blood test. At least so says the CDC here. http://www.cdc.gov/tb/publications/factsheets/prevention/bcg.htm

The only time that should come into play is if the medical was lost from Knightsbridge and then you went to a US civil surgeon to correct it and they used a TST.. and I think I've only seen one person on this forum talk about that... so such false positives must only happen rarely? Otherwise don't worry about Knightsbridge and that unless of course the person had a history of having Tb.

the BCG can create a false positive PPD test, however the rates of that happening are blown out of proportion to the point where usually most people don't even bother with a PPD when they hear someone has had a BCG vaccine in the past. If you are 20 years out from your BCG vaccine, the PPD could very well come up negative. The risk is with a false positive, not a false negative. So honestly what we should be doing is trying a PPD anyway because if it's negative even with the BCG vaccine, you are really negative (the BCG is pretty bad at doing what it's supposed to do). That would avoid a chest X-ray, which exposes people to unnecessary radiation. In addition, when the prevalence of a disease gets very low (Like Tb in the US/UK), the risk of a "false positive" being more common than a true positive goes up. The number of false positive Chest X-rays (ones that may having something that triggers an additional workup) is likely higher than the number of actual Tb cases they catch.

Anyway, none of us can change anything. Just pointing out that their "routine Chest X-ray" is not very evidence based and basically irradiates a lot more people than you likely need to.

EDIT:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17131776

If you received BCG <1 year of age and had a TST/PPD done >10 years later the chance of a positive test was 1%. If you received BCG when you were a child (but >1), and got tested >10 years later the rate was 21%.

So at the very least 4 out of 5 people would still test negative if they just did the skin test first and save people the radiation. Of course the price you pay to see the doctor at Knightsbridge they could also do a Quantiferon (blood test). That would impact their bottom line and unfortunately they are likely the designated examination site because they make money from it.

Edited October 6, 2016 by bcking

[tombonjovi 1]

Thank you to everyone for your help.
I have a scheduled an appointment for the remaining vaccinations and will not be obtaining a vaccine foe chicken pox (Varicella) as advised above :-)

Thanks

T

[tombonjovi 1]

Hi

I have my medical this afternoon and have completed all my required vaccinations, or at least started the process (first stage of Hep B completed with 2nd booked in future), as you only have to show that you have started the process. however, I last had the Influenza vaccine towards the end of January this year (2016). I have spoken to my GP surgery who advised that unless you feel unless, it is not essential as it is valid for 12 months. WIth this in mind, would I required to get a further Flu shot prior to my interview, or am I covered until Jaunary 2017 and okay re the require vaccinations prior to the medical?

Thanks

T

[JFH 12,191]

Hi

I have my medical this afternoon and have completed all my required vaccinations, or at least started the process (first stage of Hep B completed with 2nd booked in future), as you only have to show that you have started the process. however, I last had the Influenza vaccine towards the end of January this year (2016). I have spoken to my GP surgery who advised that unless you feel unless, it is not essential as it is valid for 12 months. WIth this in mind, would I required to get a further Flu shot prior to my interview, or am I covered until Jaunary 2017 and okay re the require vaccinations prior to the medical?

Thanks

T

The flu vaccine changes each season because the virus changes each season. So the one for this current winter is different to the one that was given in January 2016.

Although the vaccine may provide 12 months' immunisation against that strain from January 2016, it's a new strain now and so I would think a new vaccine would be required.

http://www.flu.gov/about_the_flu/virus_changes/

[tombonjovi 1]

Hey Thank you for your reply

I have just spoken my doctor to see if I could have the fly vaccine but they advised against it as I have been suffering with a chest infection and would need to be free of that infection for the flu shot can be given. Will this effect my medical this afternoon or is it worth just going go the chemist to get it there if it is essential?thanks

Thanks :-)