‘Very reassuring’: COVID-19 vaccination safe for children after MIS-C
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A study found no reported serious adverse events among children who received a COVID-19 vaccine after recovering from multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children, or MIS-C, according to results published in JAMA Network Open.
“There have been very limited data on the safety of COVID-19 vaccines in patients who had a history of MIS-C,” co-author Matthew D. Elias, MD, an attending at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, told Healio.
“We all know COVID-19 vaccines are very helpful,” Elias said. “They decrease the risk of serious COVID-19 infection and decrease the risk of COVID-19 complications, including the risk of developing MIS-C itself, but there have been a lot of questions from families and health care professionals about whether the COVID-19 vaccine would cause an abnormal immune response in patients with a history of MIS-C because MIS-C itself is involved with an abnormal immune response after COVID infection. So would this lead to recurrence of MIS-C? Would it lead to myocarditis after vaccination?”
The CDC recommends that patients with a history of MIS-C wait until they are clinically recovered and it has been at least 90 days since their diagnosis to receive a COVID-19 vaccine.
“No doubt that's based on expert consensus, but there are very limited data, so our study aimed to address this issue,” Elias said.
Elias and colleagues conducted a cross-sectional study of patients enrolled at 22 North American centers participating in an NIH and National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute-sponsored study called Long-Term Outcomes After the Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MUSIC). Eligible subjects included patients aged 5 years or older with a history of MIS-C more than 90 days after their MIS-C diagnosis. The patients filled out questionnaires about vaccination status and adverse reactions.
Of 385 eligible patients, 185 had received at least one vaccine dose, with 31 receiving a single dose, 142 receiving two doses and 12 receiving three doses. Most patients received Pfizer’s vaccine (347 of 351 doses).
Only 90 patients — about 48% of the vaccinated group — reported minor adverse reactions, which included arm soreness and fatigue. None reported any serious adverse events, including MIS-C recurrence or myocarditis.
“[The findings] were very reassuring, and honestly a sigh of relief,” Elias said. “I wouldn't say that I was surprised by any of the results, but this was what I was certainly hoping to see.”
References:
CDC. Summary document for interim clinical considerations for use of COVID-19 vaccines currently authorized or approved in the United States. https://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/covid-19/downloads/summary-interim-clinical-considerations.pdf. Published Dec. 6, 2022. Accessed Jan. 6, 2023.
COVID-19 vaccine for children after MIS-C appears safe. https://www.eurekalert.org/news-releases/975414. Published Jan 3, 2023. Accessed Jan. 5, 2023.