Parents angry over boy's unwanted MMR jab

Young Benito Panice was given the Measles, Mumps, Rubella vaccine - linked to autism - instead of the Hib booster for which the couple say he was booked in to Sidley Surgery.

Parents John and Tara Panice, of Glassenbury Drive, have been strongly opposed to the MMR vaccine and want to know how it could have happened.

Mrs Panice said: "We spent a lot of time looking at the pros and cons of MMR before making our decision, and it was all a waste of time as it was forced upon my son with no consent."

She explained: "I received a letter a couple of weeks ago saying Benito was due for his Hib booster and made an appointment at Sidley surgery.

"My husband took him and when the nurse called him in she injected him once in each arm and popped something in his mouth.

"My husband rang me to say how brave Benito had been and I was alarmed by the fact he had been injected twice.

"I rang the surgery and the nurse told me Benito had been given MMR as well as diphtheria, typhoid and whooping cough injections and a polio vaccine by mouth. He was not given the Hib he was booked for."

Mrs Panice was livid. She and John have been resisting pressure from doctors for the last two and a half years for Benito to have the jab.

The recommended age for the MMR vaccine is 15 months but the couple were too concerned about the possible health implications.

Thousands of families nationwide are planning legal action against the manufacturers of the vaccine after their children developed symptoms of autism and bowel disorders following immunisation.

A formal complaint has been submitted. A health care spokesman said individual cases could not be discussed.