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Majority Of Children Vaccinated Against Hepatitis B Not At Increased Risk Of Multiple Sclerosis, Study Shows

Date:
September 28, 2008
Source:
American Academy of Neurology
Summary:
The majority of children vaccinated against hepatitis B are not at an increased risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a study in Neurology.
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The majority of children vaccinated against hepatitis B are not at an increased risk of developing multiple sclerosis (MS), according to a study to be published in the October 8, 2008, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

The study based in France involved 349 children with MS and 2,941 children without the disease. The children were all under the age of 16. A total of 24.4 percent of the children with MS were vaccinated for hepatitis B in the three years before the study, compared to 27.3 percent for the children without MS.

Although the study found that hepatitis B vaccination does not generally increase the risk of multiple sclerosis, the children with MS were 1.74 times more likely to have received a certain type of hepatitis B vaccine, called Engerix B®. Those children with MS developed symptoms three or more years after the vaccine. The risk was only found for this specific type of hepatitis B vaccine and not found for all vaccines against hepatitis B.

This association cannot be taken as confirmation that the vaccine caused MS. Further studies are needed to determine whether this is a causal relationship.


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Materials provided by American Academy of Neurology. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.


Cite This Page:

American Academy of Neurology. "Majority Of Children Vaccinated Against Hepatitis B Not At Increased Risk Of Multiple Sclerosis, Study Shows." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 28 September 2008. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/09/080925144808.htm>.
American Academy of Neurology. (2008, September 28). Majority Of Children Vaccinated Against Hepatitis B Not At Increased Risk Of Multiple Sclerosis, Study Shows. ScienceDaily. Retrieved March 18, 2024 from www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/09/080925144808.htm
American Academy of Neurology. "Majority Of Children Vaccinated Against Hepatitis B Not At Increased Risk Of Multiple Sclerosis, Study Shows." ScienceDaily. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/09/080925144808.htm (accessed March 18, 2024).

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