Health officials assure that children with allergies can be vaccinated. The only thing needed is to be monitored by pediatricians, who already have guidelines available for such cases.
All the current approved vaccines are entirely safe for every single child, but there are very rare cases when children give allergic reactions in response to vaccines. These cases account for only 1 or 2 cases per one million child vaccination, however parents still worry for their children.
Child Health and Safety
Signs of allergic reaction after child vaccination
A team of researchers from Johns Hopkins Children's Center in Baltimore has developed an easy step-by-step guidelines to quickly and correctly identify allergic reactions in children after vaccination and stop them.
The guide says that allergic reactions mainly (99%) occur during 1 or 2 two hours after receiving the shot. Therefore, if children are monitored during this short period by a pediatrician, they will be safe to go home and be sure they will not have an allergic reaction. If children show a reaction during this period, doctors will quickly identify and stop it.
The guidelines give examples of of signs of common reactions to vaccines: 'hives, swelling, nasal congestion, difficulty breathing and occasionally vomiting'.
If children report to have allergies on certain components of vaccines they may be offered another type of vaccine. In cases with flu shots, where the most common allergic components are egg proteins and gelatin, they can have an alternative vaccine very easily. Gelatin is also used in several other vaccines like in Diphtheria Tetanus Pertussis, which can be easily replaced by another vaccine. On the other hand, children, who have allergies on Measles Mumps Rubella or Chickenpox vaccines, which again contain gelatin, will not be able to take any other medicine. Therefore, these kids will need to be monitored by a doctor a short while after being vaccinated.
Although vaccinations lead to complications very rarely, there are many parents who avoid vaccinating their children. Allergies are one of causes leading to vaccine avoidance. Now pediatricians hope that these guidelines will make it easier for them to vaccinate children with allergies and will make parents feel more comfortable and safe.