Giving Tylenol can reduce effectiveness of vaccines in babies

October 16, 3:12 AMIndianapolis Healthy Living ExaminerAmanda C. Strosahl

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Use Tylenol to trreat your baby's fever, not to prevent one. (Photo: Olga Doroschenkova)

Giving Tylenol to babies to prevent a fever after a vaccination can reduce the effectiveness of the vaccine, according to a new study published in the October 17, 2009, issue of the British medical journal The Lancet.

Researchers in the Czech Republic conducted a study on the use of acetaminophen (the medicine in Tylenol) to prevent fevers in babies who had received routine childhood vaccinations for pneumococcal disease, Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib), diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough, hepatitis B, polio and rotavirus. Some babies received acetaminophen every six to eight hours for 24 hours, while others received none. The babies who received the acetaminophen produced significantly fewer antibodies against the illnesses for which they had been vaccinated.

Vaccinations are designed to create an immune system response and a fever is a natural part of the process. Preventing the fever appears to reduce the processing of the vaccine, explained Dr. Robert T. Chen, a blood safety specialist at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“Unless your doctor specifically recommends it, do not administer fever-reducing medicines at the same time as vaccination to prevent your child from developing a fever,” said Dr. Chen. "It is still okay to use antipyretics [fever-reducing medications] to treat a fever, but just not recommended to prevent fever."

“High fevers can be serious, especially in infants. It is important to work with your doctor to provide the best care for your child," added Dr. Chen.

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