Why Kids Shouldn't Get the Flu and Pneumonia Vaccine on the Same Day

The CDC recommends that children under five years of age get the pneumococcal vaccine to prevent pneumonia - and all children over six months of age be given the flu vaccine for influenza protection. But for some children, getting the flu and pneumococcal vaccine for pneumonia on the same day may increase their risk of seizures.

Flu and Pneumonia Vaccine in Children: Is There a Greater Risk of Seizure?

According to new information published on Medscape.com, getting the flu and pneumonia vaccine at the same time increases the risk of seizures in kids between the ages of 6 months and 23 months.

These vaccine-related seizures usually occur the day after a child receives the vaccination and aren't life-threatening, although they may be quite disturbing to parents who don't know why their child is having seizures. Some children run a fever after a vaccination - and go on to develop a seizure while their temperature is high.

Young children who get the MMR vaccine for measles, mumps and rubella and the whooping cough vaccine are at higher risk for seizures too. These seizures usually present in a similar manner - the child has a fever and seizure the day after the vaccine, although with the MMR vaccine, seizures can develop up to 2 weeks afterwards. These seizures are frightening to parents but usually don't lead to long-term damage.

Recently, the FDA noted an increased incidence of febrile seizures (fever with seizures) among kids who receive the trivalent inactivated flu vaccine called Fluzone, the only one that's approved for children between 6 months and 23 months of age. Fortunately, none of the children have had long-term health issues after their seizure, and they aren't at greater risk for epilepsy or a seizure disorder as a result of their vaccine-related seizure.

Flu and Pneumococcal Vaccine: Cause for Concern?

Not surprisingly, parents are concerned about giving a young child a vaccine that could lead to seizures, but the CDC still recommends that all children be immunized since pneumonia and the flu can be deadly in young children with an immature immune system.

Before allowing your child to be vaccinated with the flu and pneumonia vaccine, talk to your pediatrician and make sure they don't get the two vaccines on the same day to reduce the risk of a febrile seizure - just to be safe.

References

Epilepsy Curr. 2002 January; 2(1): 15-16.

Medscape.com. "Co-administration of Flu, Pneumococcal Vaccines Linked to Febrile Seizures