Unexpected problems with the new cervical cancer vaccine have emerged, according to a new study.
Girls who have the human papillomavirus vaccine face a risk of serious allergic reactions and shock, Australian researchers have reported.
The study of a vaccination programme in New South Wales last year found eight confirmed cases of anaphylaxis amongst 114,000 girls who had the procedure.
These included breathing difficulties, nausea and rashes.
Researcher Dr Julia Brotherton said the rate of reaction was more than 25 times that found in meningitis C vaccination programmes involving school children.
Reporting in the Canadian Medical Assocation Journal, she says one possibility is that adolescent girls are increasingly prone to anaphylaxis.
She says problems remain rare and what is needed is “the importance of good training for staff administering vaccines in school or other settings in the recognition and management of suspected anaphylaxis and its reporting.”
CMAJ 10.1503/cmaj.080916
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