Flu Vaccine Made Son Seriously Ill
May 7th, 2010
http://www.ntnews.com.au/article/2010/05/07/145551_ntnews.html
Jayke de Vries with mum Amanda was flown to Melbourne
after reacting to a flu vaccination.
A DARWIN woman has told of her week of trauma after her
young son contracted a blood disease after being vaccinated
for swine flu.
Karama mum Amanda de Vries said she is convinced the illness
came from a complication associated with the vaccine.
She came forward to tell her story after more than 100 young
children in Western Australia had bad reactions to the
seasonal flu vaccine, often including fever and convulsions.
The vaccine has been banned for children under 5.
Ms de Vries said her son Jayke, who was nine years at the
time, came down with a severe fever around Christmas last
year, two days after the H1N1 vaccination.
After tests at Royal Darwin Hospital could not diagnose the
illness, Jayke was flown to Melbourne.
Doctors said it could be leukaemia, or even HIV, but could
not find the cause.
Ms de Vries and her two other children were also vaccinated
at the same time but only Jayke became ill.
Jayke recovered after two weeks.
Ms de Vries suspects it may have been an interaction with an
earlier exposure to glandular fever or parvovirus but
doctors were unable to give her an answer.
Ms de Vries said the experience meant she would not let her
children get vaccinated any more.
"I don't believe we know the whole story on the side
effects, and do the side effects for some people outweigh
the good for everyone?" she said. "I'll never know (for
sure) if it was the vaccine. But I'll never take the
chance."
Health department spokesman Robin Osborne said the case
would be followed up with the family.
"Adverse reactions to vaccinations are recorded and
investigated," he said.
NT Centre for Disease Control director Vicki Krause said
there had not been further reports of children in the
Territory coming down with fevers after flu vaccination