would you change pedis?

meg1974

DD got a flu shot about a month ago. I asked the dr. if it had thimerisol in it, and she said no. Then the nurse gave me paperwork to sign saying I had received info about thimerisol. I questioned it again, and the nurse told me the shot didn't have it.

Afterwards, I read on a web site that all of the vaccines given to children under 2 have thimerisol. The site is the national network for immunization info, so it seems pretty reliable. 

I'm not sure what to do. I'm not in love with this pedi practice, but they have been pretty good so far - there are pros and cons. I don't know if they were lying to me or if it was just an oversight. What makes me think they lied is the paperwork I had to sign about thimerisol. I mean, why would I have had to sign that if the shot didn't have it?

I know there are different opinions about if thimerisol is harmful or not, and I don't want to get into a debate about that. It's more of an issue of should I trust the pedi after this.  

andrea922

Not all shots given to kids under 2 have thimerosal in them.

meg1974

andrea922:

Not all shots given to kids under 2 have thimerosal in them.

 

Here's the web site:

https://www.immunizationinfo.org/vaccines/influenza

I know not everything you read online is true though, so that's part of why I'm on the fence about this.  

Que*Syrah

I can understand changing pedis over being lied to. I don't have a problems with vaccines or the amount of thimerosal that may or may not be in them so that's not an issue for me.

But it doesn't sound like the paper you signed was acknowledging the thimerosal contained in the vaccine your child was given. At some point did you discuss thimerosal beyond asking if it was in the vaccine? Because if so, there's nothing wrong with the paperwork. 

And PPs are right- not all shots have it in them. So your DD may have indeed been given a thimerosal-free vaccine. 

In this case, I'd say it's not worth switching over. I guess I wouldn't have signed the paper and insisted that I be shown proof that the vax was thimerosal-free.

PinkGrapefuit

They don't all have thimerosal, see this chart. Call the office and ask what brand they use for flu shots. 

From the FDA:

 

Seasonal Trivalent Influenza	Fluzone (multi-dose presentation) (Sanofi Pasteur, Inc)	0.01% (12.5 ?g/0.25 mL dose, 25 ?g/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 ?g/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 ?g/0.5 mL dose)
	Afluria (single-dose presentation) (CSL Limited)	Free	Approved 11/10/09, never contained thimerosal

meg1974

According to the web site I found, Fluzone and Fluarix do have it, and Afluira is not given to children under 3. 

Que*Syrah

meg1974:

According to the web site I found, Fluzone and Fluarix do have it, and Afluira is not given to children under 3. 

If you call your pedi they will tell you what they gave your LO.

PinkGrapefuit

meg1974:

According to the web site I found, Fluzone and Fluarix do have it, and Afluira is not given to children under 3. 

The link you posted above hasn't been updated for nearly a year. I would use CDC of FDA sites only for info. Mainly vaccines that are not pre-measured syringes are the ones with thim. There are a few exceptions of course. 

CDC link: https://www.cdc.gov/flu/protect/vaccine/vaccines.htm

I would do more research, from legitimate sites, before considering switching pediatricians. 

andrea922

I can tell you, 100%, that my under 3 year old son has had the flu shot with no preservatives in it.

lisa5ny

andrea922:

I can tell you, 100%, that my under 3 year old son has had the flu shot with no preservatives in it.

Ditto this. They don't all have it.

greengirl0909

I feel like I kinda got the same brush off about vaccines and my concerns.  The almost acted condescending? Like, oh funny, cute little momma thinks she knows something about vaccines. They even tried to tell me I was flat out wrong about something I had gotten off of the AAP website.  We switched peds, but we had LOTS of other issues.  GL