Antibiotics
'Antibiotics' are used in vaccines to prevent bacterial contamination during the manufacturing process. Antibiotics commonly used are gentamycin, kanamycin, neomycin, streptomycin, polymyxin B, chlortetracycline, and amphotericin B. All of these antibiotics can stimulate allergic reactions.
- Afluria: Hypersensitivity to neomycin or polymyxins.
- Agriflu: Hypersensitivity to kanamycin or neomycin.
- FluMist: Hypersensitivity to gentamicin, gelatin, or arginine; children and adolescents 2 to 17 y of age receiving aspirin therapy or aspirin-containing therapy.
Allergy to neomycin What is neomycin and where is it found? It is also used as a preservative in some vaccines.
February 2008 – Pharmacovigilance of vaccines. “Thus pharmacoepidemiology studies are necessary to confirm the alerts identified by spontaneous reporting. ADRs can be specific, related to the antigen of an attenuated alive virus vaccine (lymphocyte meningitis after anti-mumps vaccine) or non-specific, related to a component different from the antigen (aluminum hydroxide involved in the “macrophagic myofasciitis”, allergic reactions to neomycin, latex, egg or gelatine). Importance of Pharmacovigilance of vaccines is illustrated.”
December 2005 – Hypersensitivity Reactions to Vaccine Components: Neomycin
September 2005 – Hypersensitivity reactions to vaccine components. (free registration) “This article will review adverse cutaneous events consistent with hypersensitivity reactions to the following ingredients in vaccines: aluminum, thimerosal, 2-phenoxyethanol, formaldehyde, and neomycin.”
May-June 2003 – Adverse reactions to vaccines. “Hypersensitivity reactions fall into six categories, depending on the causative agent: reactions due to some component of the infectious agent or one of its products; reactions due to adjuvants: aluminium hydroxide; reactions due to stabilizers: gelatin; reactions due to preservatives: thiomersal; reactions due to antibiotics: neomycin; and reactions due to a biological culture medium: chicken embryo cells.”
2003 – Measles-mumps-rubella Vaccination and Egg Allergy “Therefore, hypersensitivity to other vaccine constituents, such as gelatin or neomycin, which are present in much larger quantities than is egg protein, has been proposed.”
January 2001 – Allergenic components of vaccines and avoidance of vaccination-related adverse events. “Selected vaccines contain antibiotic drugs, so it is important to note if an individual has any known drug sensitivity, especially to neomycin, polymyxin B, or amphotericin B. Lastly, vaccine preservatives may cause reactions, but this occurs very infrequently.”
March 1997 – Varicella vaccination guidelines for adolescents and adults. “Vaccination guidelines stress a systematic review of several factors: neomycin sensitivity, immunosuppressed status, current health and use of medications (particularly corticosteroids), recent use of immune globulin, risk of pregnancy, lactation status and risk of inadvertent transmission to vulnerable contacts.”
May 1993 – Rational use of measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine. “A few specific contraindications exist, including a genuine hypersensitivity to eggs, and to the aminoglycoside antibiotics kanamycin and neomycin. An increasing number of countries are now adopting a 2-stage MMR policy in an attempt to prevent epidemics among those who remain unprotected, and to move towards eventual disease eradication.”
February 1993 – MMR Vaccine and Neomycin Allergy “Our experience with the following patient suggests that hypersensitivity to these additives found in the MMR vaccine, especially neomycin, may be a factor in documented reactions in individuals without egg allergy.”
1991 – Contact eczema and epicutaneous tests–distribution of allergens and changes in the spectrum in Vienna. “In agreement with reports from comparable centers, metals are high up on the “hit list” of frequent allergens (nickel 24%, cobalt 9%, chromates 6%), followed by ingredients of cosmetics and toiletries (fragrances 16%, balsam of Peru 10%, Kathon 5%), whilst already way back are topical medicines (neomycin 4%, parabens 3%, lanolin 2%, benzocaine 1%) and rubber additives (thiuram-mix 2% and carba-mix 1%). Almost all other substances lie below the 1% limit.”
March 1988 – Allergy to non-toxoid constituents of vaccines and implications for patch testing. “We report 3 patients with persistent symptoms at vaccination sites. All were allergic to aluminum and one to thiomersal and neomycin too.”
February 13, 1981 – Neomycin Sensitivity and the MMR Vaccine