A Review of a Paediatric Emergency Department Vaccination Programme for Patients at Risk of Allergy/Anaphylaxis
Acta Pediatrica, 05/24/2012

Cronin J et al. – This is one of the largest studies looking at childhood vaccinations performed in a hospital setting for children who are “at–risk” of allergy, anaphylaxis or hypersensitivity. A significant number of referrals were unwarranted and the majority could have been safely managed in the community.

• This was a prospective observational cohort study set in an urban tertiary Paediatric ED.
• All attendances for any childhood vaccination for a 5-year period (from the 1st of Jan 2006 to the 31st of December 2010) were included.

• A total of 446 vaccines were administered during the study period in 374 patients.
• Of these vaccinations, 310 (69.5%) were Measles, Mumps, Rubella (MMR). The majority of patients (348, 93%) were referred from the community.
• Suspected egg allergy was the reason for the majority of referrals for MMR (261/310 (84.2%)). Only 6 patients (1.3%) experienced an immediate reaction to a vaccination. All reactions were minor.