The MMRV vaccine is a combination

vaccine A vaccine is a biological Dosage form, preparation that provides active acquired immunity to a particular infectious disease, infectious or cancer, malignant disease. The safety and effectiveness of vaccines has been widely studied and verifi ...

against

measles Measles (probably from Middle Dutch or Middle High German ''masel(e)'', meaning "blemish, blood blister") is a highly contagious, Vaccine-preventable diseases, vaccine-preventable infectious disease caused by Measles morbillivirus, measles v ...

mumps MUMPS ("Massachusetts General Hospital Utility Multi-Programming System"), or M, is an imperative, high-level programming language with an integrated transaction processing key–value database. It was originally developed at Massachusetts Gen ...

rubella Rubella, also known as German measles or three-day measles, is an infection caused by the rubella virus. This disease is often mild, with half of people not realizing that they are infected. A rash may start around two weeks after exposure and ...

(German measles), and varicella (chickenpox), abbreviated as ''MMRV''. The MMRV vaccine has similar

immunogenicity Immunogenicity is the ability of a foreign substance, such as an antigen, to provoke an immune response in the body of a human or other animal. It may be wanted or unwanted: * Wanted immunogenicity typically relates to vaccines, where the injecti ...

and overall safety profiles to the

MMR vaccine The MMR vaccine is a vaccine against measles, mumps, and rubella (German measles), abbreviated as ''MMR''. The first dose is generally given to children around 9 months to 15 months of age, with a second dose at 15 months to 6 years of age, w ...

administered with or without the varicella vaccine. The MMRV vaccine is typically given to children between one and two years of age. Several companies supply MMRV vaccines. Proquad is marketed by Merck and was approved in 2005, for use in the United States by the

Food and Drug Administration The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a List of United States federal agencies, federal agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is respo ...

(FDA) for children ages twelve months through twelve years. Stand-alone virus

, and varicella vaccines had been previously licensed in 1963, 1967, 1969, and 1995, respectively. An MMRV vaccine called Priorix Tetra by

GlaxoSmithKline GSK plc (an acronym from its former name GlaxoSmithKline plc) is a British Multinational corporation, multinational Pharmaceutics, pharmaceutical and biotechnology company with headquarters in London. It was established in 2000 by a Mergers an ...

has been approved in Germany and Australia.

Recommendations

The MMRV vaccine, a combined MMR and varicella vaccine, simplifies the administration of the vaccines. One 2008 study indicated a rate of

febrile seizures A febrile seizure, also known as a fever fit or febrile convulsion, is a seizure associated with a high body temperature but without any serious underlying health issue. They most commonly occur in children between the ages of 6 months and 5 ye ...

of 9 per 10,000 vaccinations with MMRV, as opposed to 4 per 10,000 for separate MMR and varicella shots; U.S. health officials known as the ACIP therefore do not express a preference for use of MMRV vaccine over separate injections.

Adverse events

Rare but serious adverse events reported following Proquad vaccination include

allergic reactions Allergies, also known as allergic diseases, are various conditions caused by hypersensitivity of the immune system to typically harmless substances in the environment. These diseases include hay fever, food allergies, atopic dermatitis, alle ...

, including swelling of the lips, tongue, or face; difficulty breathing or closing of the throat;

hives Hives, also known as urticaria, is a kind of skin rash with red or flesh-colored, raised, itchy bumps. Hives may burn or sting. The patches of rash may appear on different body parts, with variable duration from minutes to days, and typically ...

; paleness; weakness; dizziness; a fast heartbeat;

deaf Deafness has varying definitions in cultural and medical contexts. In medical contexts, the meaning of deafness is hearing loss that precludes a person from understanding spoken language, an audiological condition. In this context it is written ...

ness; long-term seizures, coma, or lowered consciousness; seizures (jerking or staring) caused by fever; or temporary low platelet count. For children aged two and younger, the MMRV vaccine is associated with significantly more

adverse events In pharmaceuticals, an adverse event (AE) is any unexpected or harmful medical occurrence that happens to a patient during medical treatment or a clinical trial. Unlike direct side effects, an adverse event does not necessarily mean the medicatio ...

compared to separate administration of MMR and varicella vaccinations on the same day. There are 4.3 additional

per 10,000 vaccinated children (95% CI 2.6–5.6), 7.5 additional mostly mild fever episodes per 100 vaccinated children (95% CI, 5.4–9.4) and 1.1 additional measles-like rash per 100 children (95% CI, 0.2–1.8). Febrile seizures caused by the MMRV vaccine occur 7 to 10 days after vaccination. In children age 4–6, there is no evidence for an increased risk in febrile seizures after the administration of Proquad compared to the separate administration of MMR and Varicella vaccines.

Legal status

Proquad was approved for medical use in the United States in September 2005, in the European Union in April 2006, in Australia in February 2007, and in Canada in May 2014. Priorix Tetra was approved for medical use in Australia in November 2005, and in Canada in June 2008.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mmrv Vaccine Chickenpox Combination vaccines Drugs developed by GSK plc Live vaccines Measles Drugs developed by Merck & Co. Mumps Rubella

Recommendations

Adverse events

Legal status

References

Further reading

External links