A recent research has shown a higher-than-expected rate of a severe allergic reaction to HPV vaccine, Gardasil, in young women in Australia. This rare and severe allergic reaction is known as Anaphylaxis. This allergic reaction leads to hives or an itchy rash, a quickening heart beat and wheezing or breathing difficulties.

Gardasil is a HPV vaccine. This vaccination is given to immune women against infection by two strains of HPV. These strains are mainly responsible for 70 per cent of all cervical cancers as well as two strains that cause genital warts. It can be given to women and girls ages 9 to 26.

Researchers found that young women in Australia who got vaccination to prevent cervical cancer were five to 20 times more likely to have anaphylaxis as compared to girls who got other vaccines in comparable school-based vaccination programs. This research was done by the team of Australian researchers led by Dr. Julia Brotherton of The Children's Hospital at Westmead. Researchers analyzed the data collected from 114,000 young women vaccinated with Merck & Co's Gardasil vaccine as part of a 2007 vaccination program in New South Wales. Out of these women, 12 had suspected cases of anaphylaxis. While eight out of 12 young women had anaphylactic reactions after the vaccine.

Generally anaphylactic reactions are rare occurrence. Frequency of these reactions is one case in one million vaccinations for many vaccines. But researchers found that the frequency of anaphylactic reactions was 2.6 cases per 100,000 vaccinations during the HPV vaccination program in New South Wales in 2007.

Researchers added that the severe allergic reactions to the human papilloma virus or HPV vaccine were unusual and manageable and that the vaccine remained safe. Moreover all the girls recovered. None of them suffered from life threatening form of the condition known as anaphylactic shock.

Brotherton and colleagues added that this study shouldn’t stop the use of this vaccine to which immunes against four strains of the human papillomavirus, a common sexually transmitted virus that causes genital warts and most cases of cervical cancer.

Dr. Neal Halsey of Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore added that the result of this study doesn’t change the strong recommendations for all adolescent girls to get this vaccine but we just have to watch them to make sure they don't have this allergic reaction.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention added that Gardasil has been associated with a higher risk of fainting, in some cases resulting in injury.

Gardasil manufacturer, Merck Frosst Canada - the Canadian subsidiary of Merck & Co. said in a statement that the safety profile of the vaccine "remains excellent."

It is also a fact that vaccination programs propagating use of Gardasil as immunization against four strains of the human papillomavirus have received mixed responses. Parents appear to be reluctant to have their pubescent daughters vaccinated with a product designed to make sex safe. Some worry about the safety aspects of the vaccination.