title: Vaccines in Multiple Sclerosis.
abstract: Vaccinations help prevent communicable disease. To be valuable, a vaccine's ability to prevent disease must exceed the risk of adverse effects from administration. Many vaccines present no risk of infection as they are comprised of killed or non-infectious components while other vaccines consist of live attenuated microorganisms which carry a potential risk of infection-particularly, in patients with compromised immunity. There are several unique considerations with respect to vaccination in the multiple sclerosis (MS) population. First, there has been concern that vaccination may trigger or aggravate the disease. Second, disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) employed in the treatment of MS may increase the risk of infectious complications from vaccines or alter their efficacy. Lastly, in some cases, vaccination strategies may be part of the treatment paradigm in attempts to avoid complications of therapy.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Division of Neuroimmunology, University of Pennsylvania, 3400 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA, USA. ericwilliamsonmd@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Eric M L
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Williamson
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Division of Neuroimmunology, University of Pennsylvania, 3400 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA, USA. salim.chahin@uphs.upenn.edu.
authors.forename: Salim
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Chahin
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Division of Neuroimmunology, University of Pennsylvania, 3400 Spruce Street, Philadelphia, PA, USA. joseph.berger@uphs.upenn.edu.
authors.forename: Joseph R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Berger
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002644:Chickenpox / Q000517:prevention & control; D006801:Humans; D007251:Influenza, Human / Q000517:prevention & control; D009103:Multiple Sclerosis / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000276:immunology; D012307:Risk Factors; D014611:Vaccination / Q000379:methods; D014612:Vaccines / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000276:immunology / Q000627:therapeutic use
chemical_list: D014612:Vaccines
keywords: Disease-modifying therapy; Immunity; Influenza; Multiple sclerosis; Vaccination; Varicella zoster