US recalls 800,000 swine flu shots for children

Dec 16, 2009, 0:27 GMT

Washington - An estimated 800,000 doses of the H1N1 vaccine for children have been recalled after the manufacturer determined they had lost their potency, the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said Tuesday.

Manufacturer Sanofi Pasteur recalled several vaccine lots after stability tests showed that the paediatric syringes had lost potency after being shipped. The doses were meant for children between 6-35 months.

There were no safety concerns, the CDC emphasized, as all the doses passed tests for purity and safety.

Tests conducted after manufacture showed that the doses contained the recommended 7.5 micrograms of antigen, which is needed to stimulate immunity. Subsequent testing revealed that some of the virus component had degraded, weakening the vaccine.

Children who had already been administered the vaccine didn't need to be reimmunized, the CDC said. But those who had received just one dose should get a second shot, as is required in the case of all children below 10 years.

Last week the CDC said that swine flu has claimed an estimated 10,000 lives in the United States, more than double the estimated death toll in November.

The H1N1 virus had infected about 50 million people, or one in six Americans, latest data from November showed.

The fatalities include about 1,100 children and 7,500 younger adults, who continue to be the most vulnerable to the H1N1 virus.