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No unexpected safety concerns observed after adult MMR vaccination
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Adverse events reported after measles-mumps-rubella vaccination in adults did not include any new safety concerns, according to recently published data.
Researchers reviewed reports of adverse events in U.S. adults aged 19 years and older who received MMR vaccination from January 2003 through July 2013 as documented through the CDC and FDA’s Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS). Medical records for serious adverse events, pregnancy and other outcomes were examined, with empirical Bayesian data mining used to determine whether these adverse events were reported by vaccinated adults more frequently than expected. No causality assessments were performed.
Of the 3,175 cases examined, 77.1% were reported by women. MMR was received alone in 50.4% of cases; the remainder were co-administered with varicella (27.2%), Tdap (25.1%) and hepatitis B (17.3%) vaccinations.
Five percent of cases were classified as serious and included seven reports of death. Common symptoms were pyrexia (19%), rash (17%) pain (13%) and arthralgia (13%). Outcome findings were either already described in the manufacturer’s warning label or determined not to be an adverse event.
Despite contraindication to receive vaccination, 131 reports of pregnancy were identified. No adverse events were reported in 61.9% of pregnancies; the most commonly reported pregnancy-related events were spontaneous abortion (12.7%), therapeutic abortion (3.7%) and oligohydramnios (3.7%). Two reports involving infant outcomes were considered serious.
“We found no new or unexpected safety concerns for MMR in adults,” the researchers wrote. “We identified reports of pregnant women vaccinated with MMR, a group in whom the vaccine is contraindicated, which demonstrates the need for continued provider education on vaccine recommendations and screening for contraindications.” – by David Muoio
Disclosure: The researchers report no relevant financial disclosures.
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