ALLERGY TO VIRUS AND RICKETTSIAL VACCINES

Abstract

One of the sound principles of allergy is that whenever the host is the recipient of a foreign substance, repeated invasions may result in a hypersensitivity to that substance. It follows, therefore, that the introduction of virus and rickettsial vaccines prepared from cultures grown in chick embryonic tissues must carry in its wake the phenomena of allergic reactivity. An intriguing aspect of the allergy induced by these vaccines is that the allergenic components responsible for these reactions are related to egg-chicken proteins, substances common to the diet. Approximately 10 per cent of allergic persons are sensitive to egg and its related proteins. If the allergic population comprises 10 per cent of the total population, then 1 per cent of the general population is sensitive to egg in varying degrees. This sensitivity is spontaneously acquired through ingestion. With the advent of these newer vaccines, millions of persons have already had egg