Bengaluru, Feb 8: At least four children suffered side effects on the first day of the single shot Measles-Rubella vaccination campaign in Karnataka on Tuesday, prompting some parents to withdraw their wards from the drive.
Three students at Nirmala Convent School in Pandavapura town, Mandya district, were hospitalised after complaining of dizziness following the vaccination. The students — identified as Varadaraj, Manoj and Karthik, all in Class VIII — were discharged later.
In Bengaluru, a nine-year-old girl fainted at a private school in Rajajinagar and developed fever soon after being vaccinated against measles and rubella. Her mother, who accompanied her, had a panic attack. The mother and daughter were taken to hospital where doctors told them that it was a known side effect of the vaccine.
At Yelandur town in Chamarajanagar district, the drive had to be stopped midway when a Class V student at ASDVS School complained of illness after the vaccination. Though doctors clarified that the illness was not related to the vaccination, anxious parents thronged the school in the afternoon and demanded that the drive be stopped. Health Department officials tried to allay their fears but had to oblige them eventually. Parents said they would like to wait for a few days.
Meanwhile, some private schools in Bengaluru have given parents forms to be filled with details of the children. A few schools have made the vaccination optional. Nikitha, a parent, said, “We have to put a tick in a corner of the card if we consent to the vaccination and a cross if we don't.”
Shalini Rajneesh, Principal Secretary, Department of Health and Family Welfare, acknowledged that there had been a few cases of fainting and vomiting. “It is a common reaction to injection in school-going children, which is mostly due to anxiety. Sometimes, it could be due to vasovagal attack. Immunisation sessions are tagged with medical officers who are trained and prepared to manage such situation,” she said.
The campaign aims to target 1.65 crore children in the age group of nine months to 15 in Karnataka and will go on till February 28.
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