H1N1 vaccine doses recalled

WEST MICHIGAN (NEWSCHANNEL 3) – The manufacturer of the H1N1 vaccine has recalled hundreds of thousands of doses, some of which ended up in West Michigan.

The doses in question were specifically given to children six months to three years old. The recall covers only specific batches of the vaccine, ones in pre-filled syringes. Those doses were delivered in November.

Authorities say that no child who received the vaccine is in danger, and they do not need to be vaccinated again.

After shipping 800,000 doses of vaccine across the country, the manufacturer, Sanofi-Aventis, discovered that the doses lost some of their potency and became too weak to effectively protect against the virus.

More than 17,000 of those doses wound up in the State of Michigan, and thousands of children have already received them. The doses were distributed in Allegan, Berrien, Cass, Newaygo, Kalamazoo, Kent, and Van Buren counties.

The company says the doses are okay, and stand by the purity and safety of the vaccine. Doctors who administered the vaccine say they're not really concerned about it.

"The recall is not because this vaccine is bad or dangerous," said Dr. Frank Esper, pediatric infectious disease specialist. "The recall is because they didn't have the confidence that this vaccine would do as well as they would like."

Children receiving the vaccine are supposed to get two of them, about a month apart. The Center for Disease Control believes that due to the high demand for the vaccine, most of the recalled doses have already been given to patients.

The company is asking any medical provider who has any of the recalled doses left to send them back.

Again, both doctors and the company that made the vaccine feel confident that none of the children who received the recalled vaccine are in jeopardy, and none of them will need to get vaccinated again.

They say that even if the vaccine isn't as effective as they'd like, it still protects, and it's not harmful.