Anyone who has had anaphylaxis or any other severe allergic reaction after a vaccine should not be vaccinated again until the cause of the reaction has been determined. Anaphylaxis is a severe allergic reaction in which the person goes into shock and has difficulty breathing. It usually occurs within minutes of exposure to the source of the allergy. Anyone with a serious disorder of the immune system should not receive live virus vaccines such as oral polio, measles, mumps and rubella vaccines. This includes persons with severe congenital immune deficiency disorders, persons receiving chemotherapy for cancer, persons who have had a bone marrow or other organ transplant, and persons receiving high doses of steroids.

This document was published by the Canadian Paediatric society, 1997.

Posted by the Canadian Paediatric Society, July 1997.

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