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Vaccines

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Need for Vaccines
The U.S. has record or near-record low levels of vaccine-preventable diseases, but that does not mean that these diseases have disappeared.  Many of the viruses and bacteria that cause disease still proliferate around the world and are only a plane ride away.  Vaccines are the best defense against many diseases, which often result in serious complications such as pneumonia, meningitis (swelling of the lining of the brain), liver cancer, bloodstream infections, and even death.   Therefore, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) urges all people, especially infants and young children, to receive recommended immunizations on time.  Schedules for recommended vaccines can be found here:
  • Child Immunization Schedule
  • Catch-up Immunization Schedule
  • Adult Immunization Schedule Based on Age
  • Adult Immunization Schedule Based on Medical Indications
  • Adult Contraindications and Precautions

Safety Concerns
Although vaccines are held to the highest standards of safety, concerns still exist.  And because millions and millions of people are vaccinated each year, even a vaccine that harms just a small percentage of people can still harm many people.  Concerns about vaccine safety can make decisions about vaccines difficult.  Common concerns related to vaccine safety include:
  • Adjuvants:  Small amounts of aluminum are added to certain vaccines in order to increase the body's immune response.  Aluminum is present in U.S. childhood vaccines that prevent hepatitis A, hepatitis B, Diphtheria-tentanus-pertussis (DTaP, Tdap), Haemophilus influenza type b (Bib), human papillomavirus (HPV) and pneumococcus infection.  Aluminum has been used as a vaccine adjuvant in the U.S. for more than 70 years.
  • Autism & Thimerosal:  The Lancet study suggesting a link between autism and the measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine was officially retracted in 2010.  More recent studies have found no link between autism and vaccines containing the preservative thimerosal.   Nonetheless, the 2001 removal of thimerosal from all childhood vaccines except the influenza vaccine remains in effect.
  • Fainting: Serious injuries have occurred when people have fainted after receiving a vaccine.  Since 2005, reports of fainting have been increasing with nearly half of the reports involve girls aged 11-18 years.  The increase coincides with the licensure and recommendation of three vaccines for adolescents: meningococcal vaccine (MCV4); tetanus toxoid, reduced diphtheria toxoid, and acellular pertussis vaccine (Tdap); and human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine.
  • Febrile Seizures in Children: In the 2010-2011 and 2011-2012 influenza seasons, CDC found an increased risk for febrile seizures in young children following the inactivated influenza vaccine. During the 2012-2013 influenza season, no increased risk was found.  The reason for the difference from the previous two influenza seasons is not known. However, the composition of flu vaccines changed between the 2011-2012 and the 2012-2013 seasons.  
  • GBS and the Menactra® Meningococcal Vaccine: Guillain-Barre Syndrome (GBS) is a rare disorder in which a person's own immune system damages the nerves, causing muscle weakness and sometimes paralysis.  Most people recover fully, but in some cases nerve damage is permanent.  In rare cases people have died, usually from breathing muscles being too weak to breath normally.  Since the meningococcal vaccine (MCV4) has been recommended for adolescents, there have been concern about an increased risk of GBS linked with the vaccine. As of February 25, 2008, more than 15 million doses of MCV4 Menactra vaccination have been distributed, the CDC has received 26 confirmed case reports of GBS within 6 weeks of receipt of Menactra immunization. While the data suggests a small increased risk of GBS following Menactra immunization, the findings are being viewed with caution until they can be studied further. 
  • Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and the Hepatitis Vaccine: In 2002, the National Academy of Sciences, Institute of Medicine reviewed the evidence of a possible causal association between hepatitis B vaccine and demyelinating neurological disorders, including MS in adults. The committee found that the epidemiological evidence does not support a causal relationship between hepatitis B vaccine in adults and multiple sclerosis. The CDC continues to conduct research to examine the effects vaccines may have on the immune system.
  • Combination Vaccines:  A number of studies have been conducted to examine the effects of giving various combinations of vaccines simultaneously. These studies have shown that the recommended vaccines are as effective in combination as they are individually, and that such combinations carry no greater risk for adverse side effects.  Currently, there is no evidence suggesting that combination vaccines "overload" the immune system. 

The Vaccine Court
Lawsuits in the 1970s and 1980s blamed a range of unexplained illnesses such as sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) and mental retardation on childhood vaccines.  The success of such lawsuits drove all but one maker of the DTP (Diptheria, Tetanus and Pertussis) vaccine out of the U.S. market.  In order to bring vaccine makers back to the U.S., in 1986 Congress passed the Childhood Vaccine Injury Act which (1) protects vaccine makers from personal injury lawsuits and (2) establishes the Vaccine Injury Compensation Program (VICP) to compensate people for injuries from designated vaccines.  The fund, which is close to $3 billion now, is built up from surcharges paid for every vaccination covered by the program.  The Office of Special Masters of the U.S. Court of Federal Claims (known as the "vaccine court") administers all claims made to the program.  Awards vary in size and may pay for past and future medical expenses, rehabilitation, therapies, special education, equipment, placement, lost earnings, up to $250,000 in pain and suffering, and attorneys' fees and costs.  

[1] CDC, Vaccine Safety (February 3, 2014).

Vaccine Alerts

Australian Study Confirms HPV Vaccine is Working; Call for Higher Vaccination Rates in the U.S.
03/28/2014

CDC Study Shows Flu Vaccine Reduced Life-Threatening Flu in Children by 74%-82%
03/28/2014

Recall: Gardasil ® HPV Vaccine 

12/23/2013

Recall: One Lot of MENVEO Vaccine May Contain Moisture
12/04/2013

Recall: RECOMBIVAX HB
06/28/2014
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