NHS Choices "Behind the Headlines Assessment": Swine flu jab narcolepsy risk is very small

Source: NHS Choices Area: News The Behind the Headlines service from NHS Choices has featured a quality assessment of a study published in the BMJ and reported widely in the media. The study (designed as a retrospective analysis) found an increased risk of narcolepsy after vaccination with ASO3 adjuvanted pandemic A/H1N1 2009 vaccine (Pandemrix vaccine), thus suggesting a causal association.   The NHS Choices assessment acknowledges that the media reports are underpinned by "a well-conducted, government-funded study that confirms findings of previous research from Finland". However, it also stresses that the risk of narcolepsy is thought to be extremely low. The researchers estimate that the chance of developing narcolepsy after receiving a dose of the vaccine is somewhere between one in 52,000 and one in 52,750.   The NHS Choices assessment notes that children are not routinely vaccinated against flu, although vaccination was extended to children during the swine flu pandemic. It adds ...
Source: NeLM - News - Category: Drugs & Pharmacology Source Type: news