Combination vaccine that may protect children from five ailments, reduce shots.

A move in the right direction ot reduce complexity of vaccine schedule. The UPI (6/24) reports that the "Food and Drug Administration has licensed a vaccine against five childhood ailments in a single dose." Sanofi Pasteur's Pentacel vaccine, the "first five-in-one pediatric combination vaccine," is "approved for use in infants and children six weeks through four years of age." The vaccine provides protection "against invasive disease due to Haemophilus influenza type b, diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, and poliomyelitis."
Presently, "children in the United States receive up to 23 injections by the time they're 18 months old, as recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention," HealthDay (6/23) noted in its Health Highlights section. The use of Pentacel could reduce that number of shots by as many as seven