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Multiple vaccinations and the risk of medically attended fever

Nancy D Lin1, Ken Kleinman, K Arnold Chan

  • 1Department of Population Medicine, Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02215, United States.

Vaccine
|April 23, 2010
PubMed

Insights

Infant vaccination safety is a concern, but this study found medically attended fever rates remained low and did not increase with multiple vaccines. Findings offer reassurance regarding the safety of infant immunization schedules.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatrics
  • Immunology
  • Public Health

Background:

  • Increased infant vaccination schedules raise parental concerns about potential adverse events.
  • Medically attended fever is a common concern following infant immunizations.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate the association between infant vaccination schedules and medically attended fever.
  • To assess trends in fever rates following multiple vaccinations over a decade.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized computerized medical records from two large U.S. provider groups spanning 1991-2000.
  • Analyzed rates of medically attended fever within 7 days post-vaccination.
  • Examined fever rates in relation to specific vaccine schedules, including oral polio and rotavirus vaccines.

Main Results:

  • The overall rate of medically attended fever after infant vaccination was low (6.4 per 1000 visits).
  • No increase in fever rates was observed during the study period despite increased vaccination recommendations.
  • Elevated fever rates were noted during specific periods associated with oral polio vaccine (1994-1995) and oral rotavirus vaccine (1998-1999).

Conclusions:

  • The study provides reassurance that contemporary infant vaccination schedules are not linked to increased medically attended fever.
  • Specific vaccine components, such as oral polio and rotavirus vaccines, were associated with temporary increases in fever.
  • Findings support the safety of current multiple infant vaccination protocols.

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