Thimerosal in Vaccines
Sensitivity to Mercury varies widely from person to person, as does the body's natural ability to detoxify. Some children can get rid of the Mercury quickly, while in others, the toxin remains in the body longer, allowing it time to bind tightly in the brain and other organs. Before six months of age, infants do not produce bile, which is necessary to excrete Mercury. Mercury is one of the most toxic elements on earth, second only to Plutonium. The amount of Mercury found in one Mercury thermometer is enough to pollute a small 20 acre lake. This metal is available in three basic forms, organic, ionic, heavy metal, and is known to form very tight bonds within the bodies sulfur-hydro groups. The enzymes, which our immune system relies on for chemical reactions to occur, become disrupted as a result of the mercury binding to these sulfur-hydro groups. Sulfur is used as a binding compound within these groups and without them, or if any are absent, the body cannot make connective tissue or anti-bodies for the Immune System.
Thimerosal is a mercury-containing organic compound (an organomercurial). Since the 1930s, it has been widely used as a preservative in a number of biological and drug products, including many vaccines, to help prevent potentially life threatening contamination with harmful microbes. Over the past several years, because of an increasing awareness of the theoretical potential for neurotoxicity of even low levels of organomercurials and because of the increased number of thimerosal containing vaccines that had been added to the infant immunization schedule, concerns about the use of thimerosal in vaccines and other products have been raised. Indeed, because of these concerns, the Food and Drug Administration has worked with, and continues to work with, vaccine manufacturers to reduce or eliminate thimerosal from vaccines.
Thimerosal has been removed from or reduced to trace amounts in all vaccines routinely recommended for children 6 years of age and younger, with the exception of inactivated influenza vaccine. A preservative-free version of the inactivated influenza vaccine (contains trace amounts of thimerosal) is available in limited supply at this time for use in infants, children and pregnant women. Some vaccines such as Td, which is indicated for older children (≥ 7 years of age) and adults, are also now available in formulations that are free of thimerosal or contain only trace amounts. Vaccines with trace amounts of thimerosal contain 1 microgram or less of mercury per dose.
Thimerosal Content of Vaccines Routinely Recommended for Children 6 Years of Age and Younger
** Thimerosal is approximately 50% mercury (Hg) by weight. A 0.01%
solution (1 part per 10,000) of thimerosal contains 50 µg of Hg per 1 mL
dose or 25 µg of Hg per 0.5 mL dose.
*** The term "trace" has been taken in this context to mean 1 microgram of mercury per dose or less.
1 HibTiITER was also manufactured in thimerosal-preservative containing multidose vials but these were no longer available after 2002.
2 Children 6 months old to less than 3 years of age receive a half-dose of vaccine, i.e., 0.25 mL; children 3 years of age and older receive 0.5 mL.
3 A trace thimerosal containing formulation of Fluzone was approved on 9/14/02 and has been replaced with the formulation without thimerosal.
Thimerosal is a mercury-containing organic compound (an organomercurial). Since the 1930s, it has been widely used as a preservative in a number of biological and drug products, including many vaccines, to help prevent potentially life threatening contamination with harmful microbes. Over the past several years, because of an increasing awareness of the theoretical potential for neurotoxicity of even low levels of organomercurials and because of the increased number of thimerosal containing vaccines that had been added to the infant immunization schedule, concerns about the use of thimerosal in vaccines and other products have been raised. Indeed, because of these concerns, the Food and Drug Administration has worked with, and continues to work with, vaccine manufacturers to reduce or eliminate thimerosal from vaccines.
Thimerosal has been removed from or reduced to trace amounts in all vaccines routinely recommended for children 6 years of age and younger, with the exception of inactivated influenza vaccine. A preservative-free version of the inactivated influenza vaccine (contains trace amounts of thimerosal) is available in limited supply at this time for use in infants, children and pregnant women. Some vaccines such as Td, which is indicated for older children (≥ 7 years of age) and adults, are also now available in formulations that are free of thimerosal or contain only trace amounts. Vaccines with trace amounts of thimerosal contain 1 microgram or less of mercury per dose.
Thimerosal Content of Vaccines Routinely Recommended for Children 6 Years of Age and Younger
| Vaccine | Tradename (Manufacturer) |
Thimerosal Status Concentration**(Mercury) | Approval Date for Thimerosal Free or Thimerosal / Preservative Free (Trace Thimerosal)*** Formulation |
|---|---|---|---|
| DTaP | Infanrix (GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals) |
Free | Never contained more than a trace of thimerosal, approval date for thimerosal-free formulation 9/29/2000 |
| Daptacel (Sanofi Pasteur, Ltd) |
Free | Never contained Thimerosal | |
| Tripedia (Sanofi Pasteur, Inc) |
Trace(≤0.3 µg Hg/0.5mL dose) | 03/07/01 | |
| DTaP-HepB-IPV | Pediarix (GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals) |
Free | Never contained more than a Trace of Thimerosal, approval date for thimerosal-free formulation 1/29/2007 |
| DTaP-IPV/Hib | Pentacel (sanofi pasteur Ltd.) | Free | Approved June 20, 2008, never contained thimerosal |
| DTaP-IPV | KINRIX (Glaxo SmithKline Biologicals) | Free | Approved October 8, 2009, never contained thimerosal |
| Pneumococcal conjugate | Prevnar (Wyeth Pharmaceuticals Inc) |
Free | Never contained Thimerosal |
| Prevnar 13 (Wyeth Pharmaceuticals Inc.) | Free | Approved February 24, 2010, never contained thimerosal | |
| Inactivated Poliovirus | IPOL (Sanofi Pasteur, SA) |
Free | Never contained Thimerosal |
| Varicella (chicken pox) | Varivax (Merck & Co, Inc) |
Free | Never contained Thimerosal |
| Mumps, measles, and rubella | M-M-R-II (Merck & Co, Inc) |
Free | Never contained Thimerosal |
| Mumps, measles, rubella and varicella | ProQuad (Merck & Co., Inc.) | Free | Approved September 6, 2005, never contained thimerosal. |
| Heptatitis A | Havrix (GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals) | Free | Never contained thimerosal |
| Vaqta (Merck & Co., Inc.) | Free | Never contained thimerosal | |
| Hepatitis B | Recombivax HB (Merck & Co, Inc) |
Free | 08/27/99 |
| Engerix B (GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals) |
Free | 03/28/00, approval date for thimerosal-free formulation 1/30/2007 | |
| Haemophilus influenzae type b conjugate (Hib) | ActHIB (Sanofi Pasteur, SA) OmniHIB (GlaxoSmithKline) |
Free | Never contained Thimerosal |
| PedvaxHIB (Merck & Co, Inc) |
Free | Approval date for thimerosal free formulation 08/99 | |
| HIBERIX (GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals) | Free | Approved August 19, 2009, never contained thimerosal | |
| Hib/Hepatitis B combination | Comvax (Merck & Co, Inc) |
Free | Never contained Thimerosal |
|
Seasonal Trivalent Influenza |
Fluzone (multi-dose presentation) (Sanofi Pasteur, Inc) |
0.01% (12.5 µg/0.25 mL dose, 25 µg/0.5 mL dose)2 | |
| Fluzone (single-dose presentation) (Sanofi Pasteur, Inc)3 |
Free | 12/23/2004 | |
| Fluvirin (multi-dose presentation) (Novartis Vaccines and Diagnostics Ltd) |
0.01% (25 µg/0.5 mL dose) | ||
| Fluvirin (single dose presentation) (Novartis Vaccines and Diagnostics Ltd) (Preservative Free) |
Trace (<1ug Hg/0.5mL dose) | 09/28/01 | |
| Fluarix (single-dose presentation) (GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals) | Free | Approved 10/19/09, never contained thimerosal | |
|
Afluria (multi-dose presentation) (CSL Limited) |
0.01% (24.5 µg/0.5 mL dose) | ||
| Afluria (single-dose presentation) (CSL Limited) | Free | Approved 11/10/09, never contained thimerosal | |
| Seasonal Influenza, live | FluMist (MedImmune Vaccines, Inc) |
Free | Never contained Thimerosal |
| Rotavirus | RotaTeq (Merck and Co., Inc.) | Free | Approved February 3, 2006, never contained thimerosal |
| Rotarix (GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals) | Free | Approved April 3, 2008, never contained thimerosal |
*** The term "trace" has been taken in this context to mean 1 microgram of mercury per dose or less.
1 HibTiITER was also manufactured in thimerosal-preservative containing multidose vials but these were no longer available after 2002.
2 Children 6 months old to less than 3 years of age receive a half-dose of vaccine, i.e., 0.25 mL; children 3 years of age and older receive 0.5 mL.
3 A trace thimerosal containing formulation of Fluzone was approved on 9/14/02 and has been replaced with the formulation without thimerosal.
Thanks for giving such a valuable information shared with us.
ReplyDeleteA vaccine containing 0.01% thimerosal as an additive contains 50 micrograms of thimerosal for every 0.5 mL portion or around 25 micrograms of mercury for every 0.5 mL portion.