The following is a summary of “Self-reported longitudinal COVID-19 vaccination reactogenicity profiles in persons with multiple sclerosis,” published in the December 2024 issue of Neurology by Briggs et al.  

Preventing severe COVID-19 outcomes remains critical for people with multiple sclerosis (PwMS). Early findings indicated short-term vaccine reactions among PwMS were self-limiting and comparable to the general population.  

Researchers conducted a prospective study to analyze SARS-CoV-2 vaccine reactogenicity in PwMS.  

They collected electronic self-reports from PwMS regarding their SARS-CoV-2 vaccine doses (first through fourth), local and systemic reactions within 24 hours, and demographic and clinical data (March 2021 and March 2023). Multivariable models were used to examine associations, including specific vaccine sequences for the first 3 doses.  

The result showed 60% of PwMS reported reactions after the first vaccine, 71% after the second, 62% after the third, and 54% after the fourth. Severe reactions were reported by 17% after the first dose, 22% after the second, 16% after the third, and 14% after the fourth. Older age and the use of sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) receptor modulators were inversely associated with reactions. The mRNA-1273 (M-M-M) sequence for the third vaccine had higher local reactions, while BNT162b2 (B-B-M) resulted in more systemic reactions. The M-M-B sequence showed fewer reactions compared to the B-B-B sequence.  

They concluded that short-term reactions to SARS-CoV-2 vaccines in PwMS were generally self-limiting and decreased after the second dose, with variations based on vaccine sequence and type.  

Source: msard-journal.com/article/S2211-0348(24)00829-0/fulltext