The introduction of new vaccines

Room for any more?


From Dr Richard Halvorsen:

The introduction of new vaccines

Smallpox vaccination started in the early 19th century. It was over a hundred years before another vaccine was introduced for widespread use. This was diphtheria toxoid, that was used nationally from 1940. The dates of the introductions of the different vaccines into the routine UK childhood immunisation schedule are shown in the table below.

Disease Routine vaccination started Routine vaccination stopped

Smallpox Early 1800s 1971

Diphtheria 1941

Tuberculosis (TB) 1953 2005

Polio 1956

Pertussis (whooping cough) 1958

Tetanus 1961 (in new 3 in 1 DTP)

Measles 1968

Rubella (German measles) 1971 (for teenage girls only)

MMR 1988

Hib (Haemophilus Influenzae) 1992

MMR 1996 (2nd MMR at 4 years)

Men C (Meningitis C) 1999

Pneumococcus 2006

The increasing vaccine burden

The number of vaccines routinely given to every child in the UK over the last hundred years is shown graphically below.

There have been calls over recent years to introduce several new vaccines to the UK childhood immunisation schedule. These include hepatitis B, flu, chickenpox, rotavirus and hepatitis A. All these vaccines are given routinely in the USA.

If they were all given to babies in the UK over the coming years, the number of vaccines received by five years of age may be as many as 43, as shown below.

A WHO doctor has already described the 21st century as the “Century of the Vaccines.”[1] There appears to be endless enthusiasm for introducing a seemingly unlimited number of vaccines. But there is no discussion on the maximum number of vaccines that a child should be given. Indeed most vaccine experts appear unconcerned about the possibility that we may, at some stage, be giving some children too many vaccines. Instead they talk about children being able to handle “thousands” of vaccines at any one time. [2] [3]

[1] de Quadros CA. Roadmap for vaccinations in the new millennium. Lancet 1999; 354: 2006-7.

[2] Offit PA et al. Addressing parents' concerns: do multiple vaccines overwhelm or weaken the infant's immune system? Pediatrics 2002; 109(1): 124-9.

[3] Sir Liam Donaldson, Chief Medical Officer. February 2006.