Hyderabad: A 45-day-old baby died shortly after receiving immunisation vaccines in Rajanna Sircilla district. While the baby’s parents alleged medical negligence by the healthcare staff, authorities said the death was not related to the vaccines.
District medical and health officer Rajitha confirmed that the baby’s death was caused by milk aspiration—a condition where milk enters the lungs instead of the stomach— and not by any complications from the vaccinations. A post-mortem further supported this conclusion, she said, reassuring the community that the vaccines administered—Pentavalent, Hepatitis B, and IPV—were not to blame.
On Feb 5, the parents took their baby to the primary health centre in Nerella, Thangalapalli mandal, for vaccinations. The baby was administered the Pentavalent vaccine, the Hepatitis B vaccine, and the IPV vaccine. After receiving the shots, the parents stayed at the hospital for 30 minutes before returning home. About 30 minutes later, they noticed the baby was unresponsive and rushed her to a private hospital, where she was declared dead.
The family and relatives protested, alleging medical negligence as the cause of death. However, the PHC staff explained that the baby was observed for 20 minutes after receiving the vaccines and appeared fine. Another baby was also vaccinated during the same period without any issues.
Local revenue officials and police intervened after the protests, visiting the family and offering a Rs 2 lakh ex-gratia payment. They assured the family that there was no medical negligence involved.