09 Jul Study Finds No Link Between HPV Vaccine and Blood Clots

MedicalResearch.com Interview with:
Nikolai Madrid Scheller
Department of Epidemiology Research
Statens Serum Institut, Copenhagen

Medical Research: What are the main findings of the study?

Answer: In a large and comprehensive study of more than 1.5 million women including more than 500,000 HPV vaccinated there was no association between HPV vaccination and blood clots.

Medical Research: What should clinicians and patients take away from your report?

Answer: The HPV vaccines are now included in immunization programs around the world and emerging safety issues need to be addressed in thorough and well-designed studies to inform policymakers, caregivers, and the public. Our study adds to the body of data that support a favorable overall safety profile of the qHPV vaccine and expands this knowledge by providing comprehensive analyses of the risk of VTE after qHPV vaccination.

Medical Research: What recommendations do you have for future research as a result of this study?

Answer: It is essential that other severe adverse events reported in temporal association with HPV-vaccination are investigated in detail in controlled and well-powered studies to either confirm or refute an association with the vaccine in question, as earlier experiences have demonstrated that such safety concerns might compromise vaccine acceptance and uptake.

Citation:

Scheller N, Pasternak B, Svanström H, Hviid A. Quadrivalent Human Papillomavirus Vaccine and the Risk of Venous Thromboembolism. JAMA. 2014;312(2):187-188. doi:10.1001/jama.2014.2198.

Last Updated on July 9, 2014 by Marie Benz MD FAAD