AUSVAXSAFETY summary report 2020: 18 month infographic

11,342 parents/carers responded to an SMS about their child’s health a few days after their 18-month vaccinations. 88% reported no adverse events. 12% reported any adverse event, including 1.3% who reported taking their child to a doctor or emergency department in the days after vaccination. The adverse events they reported were similar to the types of adverse events reported overall. 1,360 parents/carers reported one or more adverse events. The most commonly reported were: injection site swelling or redness (571 reports), irritability (397 reports), fever (287 reports), injection site pain (283 reports) and sleep pattern change (229 reports). These symptoms are known to occur after vaccination. They are generally mild and short-lived. These symptoms are also common in young children for other reasons (such as viral infection) and may not be related to vaccination. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children who received these vaccines had the same rates and types of adverse events as other children. Vaccines given at 18 months in 2020 are Priorix-tetra or ProQuad (protects against measles, mumps, rubella, chickenpox), Infanrix or Tripacel (protects against diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough) and Act-HIB (protects against Haemophilus influenzae type b).