Vaccinating against the hepatitis B virus does not appear to be associated with the risk of developing multiple sclerosis in childhood, according to a report in the December issue of Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.
Several studies have evaluated a possible association between the hepatitis B vaccine and the autoimmune neurological disease multiple sclerosis (MS) in adults, according to background information in the article. Most have found no significant increase in the risk of MS in the short or long term, although one identified a potentially increased risk within three years of vaccination. “Some of these epidemiologic studies have been criticized for methodological limitations,” including how vaccination status was confirmed, the authors write. “This controversy created public misgivings about hepatitis B vaccination. Hepatitis B vaccination in children remained low in several countries despite vaccination campaigns supporting early vaccination against hepatitis B in children as a means of inducing strong and long-lasting immunity and despite high levels of hepatitis B–related morbidity and mortality worldwide.”