Polio vaccine recalled in BSE scare

Stocks of an oral polio vaccine have been recalled amid fears over mad cow disease.

Stocks of an oral polio vaccine have been recalled amid fears over mad cow disease.

A breach of regulations regarding the use of UK bovine material is being blamed for the alert.

European rules say oral medicinal products should not use bovine materials from countries in which there are known cases of BSE.

A spokesman for the Department of Health said: "As the national supply of polio vaccine has already switched to a different manufacturer, the impact of the recall on the polio vaccination programme is likely to be minimal."

The risks to humans of catching CJD - the human form of BSE - was "incalculably small", the department said.

In a letter to GPs, Chief Medical Officer, Professor Liam Donaldson, said: "I am advised that the risk of a person contracting vCJD from this oral polio vaccine is incalculably small.

"However, public confidence in medicines safety is paramount. We have to approach this from a precautionary principle, knowing that these important guidelines have been breached.