Title:Vaccination and Induction of Autoimmune Diseases
Volume: 14
Issue: 2
Author(s): Éric Toussirot and Matthieu Bereau
Affiliation:
Keywords:
Vaccination, autoimmune diseases, adjuvants.
Abstract: Vaccines have been suspected of playing a role in inducing autoimmune disease (AID) for a long time.
However, apart from certain specific vaccine strains and complications (such as the swine flu vaccine and Guillain- Barré
syndrome in 1976, thrombocytopenia and the Measles-Mumps-Rubella vaccine), this role has not been established. In
spite of this, many isolated cases or series of cases of arthritis, vasculitis, and central or peripheral nervous system
symptoms following vaccination have been reported. These cases tend to be very infrequent and usually only the shortterm
outcomes are described. This paper will examine the arguments for and against the relationship between vaccines
and AID, bearing in mind that no association between the two has been clearly identified up to now. The role of adjuvants
in vaccines has been described by other teams and in a more general syndrome (Autoimmune/Autoinflammatory
Syndrome Induced by Adjuvants). Thus, cases of AID triggered by vaccines are highly rare and raise questions about the
interaction between vaccines and/or their adjuvants and the genetic context of autoimmune disease. These observations
should therefore not undermine the benefits of vaccination.
