Allergic Reaction to First MMR Vaccination at 12 Months

A.
I would ask the doc if you can separate the vaccines next time.
I am not against vaccines but have had only one vaccine administered at a time for one of my five kids. He may also have you give her some antihistamine before the vaccine.
J.

If you are really concerned you can have a rast & stratch test completed by a pediatric allergist. I recommend going to Children's for any blood work. She could be allergic to the gel in the vaccine or have a reaction because it is an egg based vaccine.
My daughter was extremely allergic to many foods and vaccines for years... she has since outgrown all of them at age 8.
Good luck.

Hi A.! Sorry to hear that you went through this... I can imagine how scary it was for you having gone through similar things myself!

My daughter has a very rare disease called Mastocytosis. She is subject to anaphylaxis for many unknown reasons and one of them is preservatives. Ask your Dr about getting vaccines without them in it if he feels that may be what caused the reaction. I am not sure if the MMR has them but it does have other chemicals for sure. Who knows what may have caused the reaction.

As for the second time you go for it you may want to also ask him about maybe taking Zyrtec for a week prior to it to build up the antihistimines in her body to prepare for a possible second reaction and giving Benedryl an hour prior.

I sure wish you lived closer because your Dr sounds like the type of Dr I want for my daughter! That is great that he went out of his way to just check on her, and I am sure that is all it is. Like another poster said though, if you are still leery give him a call.

One last thing... be VERY careful what you read on the web! I do this to myself all the time and work myself up for nothing! You already know what to watch for and if you notice anything call your Dr right away. Also, if your Dr was afraid for any of those other things he would have probably told you to watch for them.

Good luck and many blessings to you and your family!

Hi A.~
My daughter (now 20 months) had a similar reaction to the MMR vaccination at 12 months. Only difference was on her leg at the injection spot was rock-hard & very, very warm. It subsided after about 2 days. I kept giving her tylenol & rubbed the benadryl lotion on her leg. She recovered just fine. I don't think it's much too of a concern. Just keep an eye on it for further reactions.
Hope this helps!
J.

Keep an eye on her. The next shot isn't until she's 5 years old anyway. Just ask your doc about the severity of it. Try to stay off the internet it will just make you crazy with worry.

When I get my tetanus vaccine, my arm turns red, I get a rash around it, and the area is actually hot to the touch. It goes away in a few days, and I take tylenol for discomfort. I still get my tetanus shot regularly, which is especially important for my line of work. I will take the local reaction any day over the risks of exposure I face daily.

Hi A.,
I am allergic to the MMR vaccination and had the "difficulty breathing" symptoms where I was practically suffocating (So I'm told). However, when the symptoms arose, a simple dose of benadryl helped, but no, I did not and have not ever gotten any more of the vaccination. I'm sure your Dr. is checking on your daughter's condition is just a kind precaution that they do when there is an allergic reaction, so don't get too worried about it. Just keep an eye on her, obviously! :)

I just wanted to tell you that you're very lucky to have such a caring, attentive doctor. Hang onto him! And feel secure knowing that someone else is really looking out for your baby!

MMR has residual egg proteins from how it was cultured. Since your daughter reacted slightly but immediately to a vaccine she has never previously been exposed to, the immediate reaction is likely to a component of the vaccine (such as the neomycin or residual egg proteins) that her body has seen before and has generated either IgE or IgG antibodies to. I'm not an immunologist--so I would ask your child's Dr whether allergy testing (to egg in particular) either the standard scratch test that detect IgE responses or the blood test that looks at IgG is warrented. The information could be helpful, because other vaccines such as flu also have egg proteins. If so, taking preventative measures (hand washing, Vitamin D, C, E) etc to avoid/minimize flu may be safer than vaccinating against flu. You may also want to consider checking titers to MMR before the next booster. The MMR can be broken out into indivudual--so if she only needs a boost for 1 or two then that can be done. I'm having my daughter's titers checked before her 5 yo booster. I will not boost her twin brother because he has immune system dysfunction that his Dr doesn't want futher aggravated. He has enough titer to the MMR for now. But he has no titer to three other vaccines (Hep B, pertussis, and Polio) despite getting fully vaxed (3-4 times) per the recommended schedule. I think a delayed schedule (especially for that day old Hep B) may have allowed him immune system a better shot at developing in a more balanced way. Hindsight....
Hope this helps.
B.

My nephew had a terrible reaction to MMR, but sounds different than your daughter's reaction. His came on a few days after the vaccination. He had bruising all over his body (I think it was called INF...can't remember for sure though). Just the tinyest bump would cause him to bruise. This was because his white blood cell count was very low. He was hospitalized for a day or so then he had to wear a helmet for a few weeks to protect his head from internal bleeding if he was to get a bump. They went in for weekly blood tests too. The frustrating thing for my sister was that even though the MMR package insert from Merck clearly says this is a known side effect of the vaccination, her pediatrition was very reluctant to report it to the agency that tracks side-effects to vaccinations and offers patients help with their medical bills due to the side-effect.

If you decide to get a booster, I'd recommend having them divide the vaccines. MMR is a combo of three vaccines in one. My sister leared through research that kids can tolerate the vaccines better by having them individually.

Hi A.! I can definitely understand your concern, but do yourself a favor and stay off the web!!! You will drive yourself crazy and believe that your child is having every possible symptom of a bad reaction in the book!

I am very pro-vaccine and have had a number of discussions about the possible side-effects with friends of mine who are both PhDs - one works in the pharmaceuticals industry, the other a neurologist who specializes in children's autoimmune diseases. I just tell you this so you know the basis for what I am about to tell you. The reaction your child is having is very typical. Aluminum salts are added to the vaccines in order to increase the immune response. Sometimes these additives result in an irritation at the injection site. It is absolutely nothing to worry about!

I'm guessing that, based on what you've said, your doc is just very attentive and probably just wanted to check in with you to make sure you were doing ok and didn't have any questions. Parents are very worrisome these days when it comes to vaccines, and I believe your doctor just wanted to make sure you were doing alright. If you are still concerned, don't read into your doctor's actions - call and ask her why she is reacting this way. I'm sure she will put your mind at ease in 2 seconds.

I hope this little bit of info was helpful! Good luck..and don't worry, everything will be just fine! :)

My 3 kids always had a reaction to their vaccinations. The reaction was similar to the one you describe. The only suggestion from my Dr was Tylenol for discomfort/fever.

Connor has had a red spot that is hard to the touch for several days after vaccinations. I can't remember which ones. It went away after a few days and he did not have any other problems.

Given the information you've provided, it seems like the pediatrician is a very caring professional. He probably just wanted to call and check on you and your daughter to make sure everything was okay. He seemed pretty thorough in all of the 'pre-vax' routines and probably called you just to touch base with you, make sure everything was okay, and give you an opportunity to ask questions you might have had.

If you're still feeling a bit nervous about this, call the doctor first thing Monday morning to get clarification/more details if necessary. Share with him your concerns.

Good luck to you and your child!

Hi A.,
I would suggest that you request that they separate the vaccine for the next round. Don't let them talk you out of it! It can be done. And it might cost more, I'm not sure.

D. L.

After checking with your doctor regarding the reasons for his concern and what he might suggest, you might want to ask about doing the vaccines separately. Rather than give the MMR, they can administer some vaccines in separate doses, just the Measles, just the mumps, just the rubela. That might be helpful for your daughter.

Good luck, Cathi

Hi A. - Local injection reactions to vaccines are not uncommon (the fact sheet they give you after the give the vaccine lists it). What surprises me is that your doctor said he had never seen one - maybe it looked different because it can be a common reaction. I think he was just being a good doctor by following up. It's sad when we are surpised when a health care professional "does the right thing." Unfortunately, doctor's are so busy, that sometimes goes by the wayside. I would seriously not worry yourself - if the only spot she had was where they injected, it really is nothing.

L., RN