Hepatitis B Vaccine Linked to Multiple Sclerosis

The BBC news reported on September 14, 2004 on a study done at the Harvard School of Public Health, that showed a three-fold increase in the incidence of Multiple Sclerosis (MS) associated with Immunization by the vaccine used for hepatitis B. The BBC article starts off by plainly stating, "People who are vaccinated against hepatitis B are at increased risk of multiple sclerosis, a study shows."

Image of a syringeThe study looked at hepatitis B immunization patterns among 163 patients with MS and compared it to 1604 control patients without MS from the same database. The results clearly showed a link between the vaccine and MS.

The article notes that the Harvard researchers do not know why there is an apparent statistical link. They note that the Harvard researchers can not determine whether the vaccine causes MS in those prone to the disease or speeds up MS in those destined to have it.

One of the researchers, Dr Miguel Hernàn stated, "We estimated that immunization against hepatitis B was associated with a three-fold increase in the incidence of MS within three years following vaccination."

The conclusion of the study sates, "These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that immunization with the recombinant hepatitis B vaccine is associated with an increased risk of MS, and challenge the idea that the relation between hepatitis B vaccination and risk of MS is well understood. "