My 1-year-old child was vaccinated against meningococcal group B and then had a high fever and fatigue for many days. What should I do? (Hong Hanh, 33 years old, Ho Chi Minh City)
Reply:
The body considers the antigen from the vaccine as a foreign substance, thereby creating antibodies to fight this foreign substance from entering. Therefore, people who receive the vaccine may experience local reactions such as pain, swelling, hard lumps at the injection site... or systemic reactions such as fever, discomfort, irritability, headache, fatigue, loss of appetite. Most of these reactions are usually mild, transient and go away on their own after 1 to 2 days.
Therefore, if your child has a fever and fatigue after receiving the meningococcal vaccine, there is no need to worry too much because it is a signal that the immune system recognizes a foreign agent and reacts.
When your child has a fever above 38.5 degrees Celsius, you can use common antipyretics such as paracetamol, with the appropriate time and dosage according to the doctor's instructions. In case your child has a heart disease, pneumonia or a history of high fever and convulsions, you can use the medicine when the fever is above 38 degrees. If your child has other medical conditions or has had a reaction to antipyretics, you need to consult your doctor about the appropriate medicine.
Fever after vaccination is a common reaction, which goes away after 1-2 days. Photo: Umn Edu
In addition, you need to choose cool, light clothes for your child, the air-conditioned room temperature should be at 27-29 degrees Celsius to reduce the temperature difference with the outside. Families should encourage children to drink plenty of water, alternating filtered water with orange juice, lemon juice, and fruit juice. The diet should be maintained as usual, there is no need to abstain from any specific foods after meningococcal vaccination.
Before being widely used, vaccines undergo safety and immunogenicity research, so they are very safe. In general, people who receive the vaccine need to monitor reactions at the vaccination center for at least 30 minutes and continue to monitor at home for at least 48 hours. This helps to promptly handle rare abnormal reactions that may occur such as anaphylaxis and convulsions due to high fever.
Therefore, when getting vaccinated, you need to pay attention to the instructions of the doctor and nurse at the center to distinguish between normal post-vaccination reactions and serious signs that require taking your child to a medical facility.
Doctor Nguyen Minh Luan
Medical Specialist, VNVC Vaccination System
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