Varivax Special Precautions

Adequate treatment provisions, including epinephrine injection (1:1000), should be available for immediate use should an anaphylactoid reaction occur.
The duration of protection from varicella infection after vaccination with Varicella Virus Vaccine Live (Varivax) (Refrigerated) is unknown.
The safety and efficacy of Varicella Virus Vaccine Live (Varivax) (Refrigerated) have not been established in children and young adults who are known to be infected with human immunodeficiency virus with and without evidence of immunosuppression (see Contraindications).
Transmission: Post-marketing experience suggests that transmission of varicella vaccine virus (Oka/Merck) resulting in varicella infection including disseminated disease may occur rarely between vaccine recipients (who develop or do not develop a varicella-like rash) and contacts susceptible to varicella including healthy as well as high-risk individuals.
Therefore, vaccine recipients should attempt to avoid, whenever possible, close association with susceptible high-risk individuals for up to six weeks. In circumstances where contact with high-risk individuals is unavoidable, the potential risk of transmission of vaccine virus should be weighed against the risk of acquiring and transmitting wild-type varicella virus.
Susceptible high-risk individuals include: Immunocompromised individuals; pregnant women without documented history of chickenpox or laboratory evidence of prior infection; newborn infants of mothers without documented history of chickenpox or laboratory evidence of prior infection.
Use in Children: No clinical data are available on safety or efficacy of Varicella Virus Vaccine Live (Varivax) (Refrigerated) in children less than one year of age. Administration to infants under twelve months of age is not recommended.