| ■ Panel No Longer Prefers ProQuad Vaccine | 2008.03.04 |
| A Merck & Co. combination vaccine for measles, mumps, rubella and chickenpox caused higher rates of fever-related convulsions in children than two separate injections (one for chickenpox and another for the three other diseases), according to a U.S. study released Wednesday. As a result of the finding about the combination vaccine ProQuad, the federal Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices moderated its preference for the vaccine, which received Food and Drug Administration approval in 2005, the Associated Press reported. The study of children ages 12 months to 23 months found the rate of seizures was twice as high in children who received ProQuad, compared to those who received the two injections. That works out to about one extra case of convulsions for every 2,000 doses of ProQuad given to children, said researchers who presented the findings Wednesday at a meeting of the advisory committee. Until Wednesday, the panel had said the ProQuad vaccine was preferable to giving children separate shots. But the new findings prompted the panel to amend its position and state that it no longer has a preference for the combo vaccine over the separate shots, the AP reported. |