Get the right vaccines, get the right classes

When freshmen tried to register for classes last week, some were hit with a harsh reality about immunization: no vaccination, no registration.

VCU students are required to get vaccines for diseases such as the mumps and meningitis. If they do not, the university will put holds on their accounts, preventing them from registering for classes.

Recent outbreaks of the mumps at the College of William and Mary, University of Virginia and Virginia Polytechnic and State University have brought attention to students’ susceptibility to diseases and the importance of vaccinations. University Student Health Services is urging students to get the required vaccines so that they will be protected – and be able to register for classes on time.

“This generation, they don’t remember measles, they don’t know polio,” said Jeannine Uzel, VCU’s immunization coordinator. “The mumps outbreak kind of brings it back.”

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there were 5,783 reported cases of the mumps in the United States between Jan.1 and Oct. 7.

Besides feeling miserable, contracting the mumps means missing school for possibly nine days.

Virginia law requires all full-time college students at four-year institutions to get vaccinated for tetanus, hepatitis B, meningitis, tuberculosis and the mumps (a vaccination that also covers measles and rubella). If not vaccinated, students must sign a waiver saying they acknowledge the risks involved by not getting the vaccines.

College students are required to be vaccinated for meningitis because of close living quarters; it is transmitted through respiratory droplets. Meningitis is an infection of a person’s spinal cord and fluid around the brain causing tissue to swell. There are five different groups of meningitis: A, B, C, W-135 and Y. The required meningitis vaccine protects against all strains except B.

On Sept. 9, a student at U.Va. died from meningitis. Shortly after the death, John Casteen, president of U.Va., sent an e-mail to students. He said precautions were taken to examine anyone with whom the student had close contact. The student, who did not live on campus, died from meningitis group B.

Uzel said meningitis is rare. But, she said, “It’s serious because it is a severe disease. You can get it at noon and be dead by 8.”

According to the National Meningitis Association, nearly 3,000 Americans contract the disease each year. Of those, 10 to 12 percent die. Survivors of the disease may live with permanent disabilities including brain damage, kidney disease, hearing loss or even lost limbs.

Uzel has a daughter going to college next fall. She said she wants to protect her daughter from whatever she can. “I can’t make sure she wears a helmet when she rides her bike, or protect her from strain B (of meningitis). But at least I know she’ll be protected from A and C.”

Student Health Services offers all required vaccines. Uzel said most insurance companies cover the vaccines.

Virginia law allows students to waive two vaccinations – meningococcal vaccine and hepatitis B. Students may also waive vaccinations if they would be detrimental to their health or for religious reasons.

Freshmen must get immunized before the second semester to register for classes. Students can check eServices to see if there are holds on their accounts.