Pediarix, a pediatric combination vaccine that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Dec. 16, protects infants against diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough, the hepatitis B virus and polio.

It promises to eliminate six of the 20 injections that children typically receive before age 2.

The vaccine is recommended for administration in three doses to infants at approximately 2, 4 and 6 months.

Physicians from both Affinity Health System and ThedaCare have said the vaccine looks promising, but that their clinics will best serve families by waiting to see how well the vaccine does on the market.

According to Dr. John Barkmeier, a family physician at Menasha’s ThedaCare Physicians, ThedaCare’s review of the vaccine’s risks, benefits and expense may come in about six months. The review will be part of an overall standardization of practices at ThedaCare’s clinics.

“These are immunizations that have been used individually or in other combinations before, so safety problems are in my mind low,” Barkmeier said. “We know the immunizations work and we assume this vaccine will as well, but it’s nice to have some history behind that before you promote it.”

Because children usually remain on an original vaccination timetable, clinics choosing to administer Pediarix most likely will do so to infants who have not yet begun a cycle, said Dr. Peter Roloff, an Affinity pediatrician.

The topic of Pediarix, which is marketed by SmithKline Beecham Pharmaceuticals, probably will come up at Affinity for the first time at a departmental meeting sometime after Jan. 1, Roloff said.

A weightier consideration than Pediarix’s potential financial cost is the question of its efficacy.

“The most important thing is if you get as good of an immune response, so that our children are as protected by the (Pediarix) combination vaccine as if they were given shots individually,” Roloff said.