Should she be getting a flu vaccination that has been made with a mercury-containing preservative (thimerosal)?
— Chris from Seattle “Thimerosal and vaccine safety has been investigated quite thoroughly, and there have been no associations between getting thimerosal-containing vaccines and any kind of adverse side effects,” Pekosz says. The amount of mercury in a dose of thimerosal-containing influenza vaccine is well below the safety levels for mercury exposure and has been deemed safe by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and other experts. If for personal reasons you still want to seek out a thimerosal-free vaccine, the nasal spray vaccine doesn’t contain it, and some of the injectable vaccine is also made without it. But, Schaffner says, it may take longer to track down than the standard swine flu vaccine. “Were it my wife, she’d be vaccinated as quickly as possible,” Schaffner says, rather than leaving her susceptible to the virus for a longer time. Nationwide, more than 100 pregnant women already have been admitted to intensive care, and 28 have died.
Related Questions
- Why does some flu vaccine contain thimerosal when the preservative has been removed from other pediatric vaccines?
- Should she be getting a flu vaccination that has been made with a mercury-containing preservative (thimerosal)?
- Is influenza vaccine that does not contain thimerosal as a preservative available this flu season (2005-2006)?
