Vaccine causes severe nerve damage

18 January 2007

The vaccine designed to protect teenagers against meningitis can cause Guillain–Barré syndrome (GBS), a severe inflammatory disorder of the peripheral nerves. So far, 15 teenagers and two adults in the US have developed GBS after having been inoculated with Menactra, the vaccine that protects against bacterial meningitis. Five cases were reported in October of 2005 alone. Each sufferer has either recovered or is in the process of recovering. America’s drugs regulator, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), isn’t sure of the extent of the problem, but estimates that the vaccine may be causing 1.25 cases of GBS for every million vaccinations. On the other hand, one in 100,000 adolescents aged between 11 and 19 comes down with meningitis every year; of these, 10 per cent are fatal and 11–19 per cent may be permanently disabled as a result (www.fda.gov/cber/label/mpdtsan100306LB.pdf).

Vaccine causes severe nerve damage

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