A five-month-old girl in northern Hai Duong Province's Paediatric Hospital died on Tuesday, two days after being vaccinated with the 5-in-1 vaccine Quinvaxem, health authorities reported.

On October 25, the mother took the girl, Nguyen Ngoc TuongVy, for a vaccination at the health centre of TuKy District's Ngoc Ky Commune in Hai Duong.

Next morning, Vy had a fever and started vomiting. As the girl's condition worsened, Pham Van Vinh, head of the commune's health station, asked the parents to transfer the girl to TuKy District's General Hospital and then to Hai Duong Paediatric Hospital for emergency treatment.

Despite intensive treatment, the girl died at 4am the next day.

The girl was suspected to have died due to multiple organ failure and bacterial contamination shock.

A medical examination council has been set up to verify the cause of death.

The vaccine used for the girl belonged to lot 1453322.03, which will expire in July 2017, said Nguyen DinhThuc, deputy director of the provincial preventive medicine centre.

Tran DacPhu, director of Preventive Health Department under the ministry of Health said the council of experts would meet on Sunday to examine the vaccination process and verify the cause of the death.

Quinvaxem is meant to prevent five common, potentially fatal childhood diseases: diphtheria (D), tetanus (T), pertussis (P, whooping cough), hepatitis B (HepB), and haemophilus influenza type B (Hib).

VNS