Vaccine problems in proportion

This month we have a mouth watering menu. Our antipodean hors d'oeuvre deals with children who have had a previous adverse reaction to a vaccine. In a previous issue, we provided reasoned advice on the safety of MMR in children with real or presumed egg allergy.1 Oddly, the BMJoffered more cautious and perhaps less practical advice the following week2; unhappily the Lancet had already published a distinctly below the belt assault on this essentially safe vaccine.3 Despite the bad press, most paediatricians consider the frequency of problems with vaccines grossly exaggerated. Thus, we are pleased to provide some balance with details of a South Australian clinic offering advice and immunisation to children who have had a previous adverse event (page 128). Ninety percent were successfully revaccinated, even after reactions such as …