TABLE 3 Coding Terms for Adverse Events Reported to VAERS for Pertussis-Containing Vaccines Administered to Infants Younger Than One Year of Age in the United States, January 1995 Through June 1998* Coding Term DTaP (%) n = 913 DTP (%) n = 1939 DTPH (%) n = 2918 Agitation 235 (25.7) 608 (31.4) 890 (30.5) Fever 228 (25.0) 851 (43.9) 1132 (38.8) Screaming syndrome 129 (14.1) 506 (26.1) 678 (23.2) Convulsion 96 (10.5) 203 (10.5) 254 (8.7) Abnormal cry 89 (9.7) 386 (19.9) 588 (20.2) Stupor 80 (8.8) 174 (9.0) 243 (8.3) Somnolence 77 (8.4) 146 (7.5) 215 (7.4) Vomit 73 (8.0) 126 (6.5) 179 (6.1) Rash 72 (7.9) 93 (4.8) 145 (5.0) Urticaria 70 (7.7) 56 (2.9) 92 (3.2) Hypotonia 69 (7.6) 163 (8.4) 214 (7.3) * More than 1 term may be coded for each adverse event report. Percentages represent the proportion of adverse event reports that named the specific coding term, not the percentage of vaccinees who had a specific adverse event. Reports to VAERS represent temporal, but not necessarily causal, associations between vaccinations and adverse events.

Return to article