Related Experiment Video

Updated: Aug 21, 2026

Rapid In Vivo Assessment of Adjuvant's Cytotoxic T Lymphocytes Generation Capabilities for Vaccine Development
09:03

Rapid In Vivo Assessment of Adjuvant's Cytotoxic T Lymphocytes Generation Capabilities for Vaccine Development

Published on: June 19, 2018

Safety of combination vaccines: perception versus reality

N A Halsey1

  • 1Institute for Vaccine Safety, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA. nhalsey@jhsph.edu

The Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal
|November 13, 2001
PubMed

Insights

Combination vaccines offer protection against multiple diseases, simplifying childhood immunizations. Rigorous testing ensures these vaccines are safe and effective, benefiting children

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric medicine
  • Immunology
  • Public health

Background:

  • Combination vaccines provide simultaneous protection against multiple diseases, simplifying childhood immunization schedules.
  • Record low numbers of vaccine-preventable diseases in the United States are attributed to the success of combination vaccines.
  • Despite benefits, public concerns and misconceptions persist regarding the safety and efficacy of combination vaccines.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To address and dispel common misperceptions and potential barriers related to the use of combination vaccines in pediatric populations.
  • To provide evidence-based information on the safety and efficacy of combination vaccines.

Main Methods:

  • A comprehensive review of the existing pediatric literature was conducted.
  • The review focused on identifying and refuting common misconceptions about vaccine combination.

Main Results:

  • Combination vaccines approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) undergo extensive safety and efficacy testing.
  • FDA standards mandate that combination vaccines are as safe and effective as individually administered vaccines.
  • Over 50 years of use have informed the continuous improvement and development of combination vaccines.

Conclusions:

  • Newer combination vaccines will reduce the number of injections required for children's protection against vaccine-preventable diseases.
  • This reduction facilitates the incorporation of new vaccines into immunization schedules, enhancing disease prevention.
  • Combination vaccines are crucial for improving child health and preventing a wider range of infectious diseases.
Abstract

More Related Videos

Opsono-Adherence Assay to Evaluate Functional Antibodies in Vaccine Development Against Bacillus anthracis and Other Encapsulated Pathogens13:47

Opsono-Adherence Assay to Evaluate Functional Antibodies in Vaccine Development Against Bacillus anthracis and Other Encapsulated Pathogens

Published on: May 19, 2020

Fabrication of Pulsatile Polymeric Microparticles Encapsulating Rabies Antigen07:44

Fabrication of Pulsatile Polymeric Microparticles Encapsulating Rabies Antigen

Published on: May 12, 2023

Related Concept Videos

Vaccinations01:51

Vaccinations

Overview
The Availability Heuristic01:08

The Availability Heuristic

A heuristic is a general problem-solving framework (Tversky & Kahneman, 1974). You can think of these as mental shortcuts that are used to solve problems. Different types of heuristics are used in different types of situations, and the impulse to use a heuristic occurs when one of five conditions is met (Pratkanis, 1989):
Pharmacovigilance01:19

Pharmacovigilance

Post-marketing surveillance is a critical component of pharmaceutical regulation, often uncovering unanticipated adverse drug reactions (ADRs) once a drug is widely used over an extended period.
This process, termed pharmacovigilance, aims to detect, evaluate, and minimize harmful effects related to medication use. The data collection for pharmacovigilance depends on spontaneous reporting systems, where healthcare professionals or patients voluntarily report suspected ADRs.
In some cases, there...
Types of Biopharmaceutical Studies: Controlled and Non-Controlled Approaches01:23

Types of Biopharmaceutical Studies: Controlled and Non-Controlled Approaches

Biopharmaceutical studies constitute a vital field aiming to enhance drug delivery methods and refine therapeutic approaches, drawing upon diverse interdisciplinary knowledge. In research methodologies, the choice between controlled and non-controlled studies significantly influences the study's reliability and accuracy.
Non-controlled studies, commonly employed for initial exploration, lack a control group, rendering them susceptible to biases and external influences. In contrast, controlled...
Pharmaceutical Poisoning: Potential Scenarios01:26

Pharmaceutical Poisoning: Potential Scenarios

Pharmaceutical poisoning can occur through various channels, impacting an estimated 2 million hospitalized patients in the U.S. annually with serious adverse drug responses. These scenarios encompass both therapeutic uses, such as drug toxicity, where even standard dosages can lead to severe central nervous system depression, and non-therapeutic exposures, including accidental ingestion by children, and environmental and occupational exposures.Unintentional poisonings often involve exploratory...
Vaccines01:21

Vaccines

Vaccines are among the most effective tools in preventive medicine, designed to prepare the immune system to recognize and combat infectious agents. By introducing antigens—substances that the immune system identifies as foreign—vaccines stimulate an adaptive immune response that leads to immunological memory. This immunological memory enables the body to mount a faster and more effective response upon future exposures to the actual pathogen.Vaccines can be categorized based on the type of...