Vaccines don’t appear to trigger major flare-ups of multiple sclerosis (MS), a new studyTrusted Source published in the journal JAMA Neurology concludes.In their work, researchers studied the medical records of more than 100,000 people in a national health claims database in France. The study looked at reports of vaccine exposure prior to the onset of hospitalization due to an MS flare-up, then compared these flare-up rates with those that occurred prior to vaccine exposure for each person. Vaccines examined in the study included diphtheria, tetanus, poliomyelitis, pertussis (Haemophilus influenzae), influenza, and pneumococcal. The COVID-19 vaccine was not included because the study period occurred prior to the start of the 2020 pandemic. Of the 106,523 people with MS in the study, about a third experienced a flare-up of symptoms requiring hospitalization during the study period. However, researchers reported there was no significant association between the flare-ups and exposure to any of the vaccines studied. “However, considering the number of vaccine subtypes available, further studies are needed to confirm these results,” the study authors wrote. “Many relapses in the U.S. are treated on an outpatient basis, so a patient might be more reassured by a study that looked at the association between relapses and vaccination,” Julie Fiol, a multiple sclerosis certified nurse and associate vice president for clinical innovation and strategy at the National MS Society, told Medical News Today. “In general, studies have concluded vaccination is safe for people living with MS.”
Fiol said that vaccines “are a key strategy for preventing illness and are especially crucial for people with chronic health conditions and those using immunocompromising medications.” “For years many have believed vaccines trigger MS relapses, and there is much misinformation available online and on social media currently to support this false claim,” she said. “Studies are needed to dispel these myths and to help people make informed decisions about their health with their healthcare professional.” Multiple sclerosis is the most common chronic inflammatory demyelinating disease of the central nervous system, affecting more than 2.8 million peopleTrusted Source worldwide. Demyelination is the process where the protective covering (myelin sheath) of the nerve fibers in the central nervous system is damaged, disrupting the efficient flow of signals between the brain and the body.
