Rising mercury after receipt of thimerosal-containing vaccines

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This study by Pichichero et al, a United States-Argentina collaboration, completes the assessment of the full range of ethyl mercury (from thimerosal contained in vaccines) elimination kinetics in preterm infants who received a birth dose of hepatitis B vaccine (the current study), through receipt of multiple thimerosal-containing vaccines in infants through 6 months of age (prior studies). The rapid blood half life of ethyl mercury compared with that of methyl mercury in all studies suggests that risk assessment regarding exposure to thimerosal used as a preservative in vaccines should not be based on that of methyl mercury as consumed in food.

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