Study: Vaccines don’t lead to arthritis in adults
Such is the case with the idea that immunizations for everything from tetanus to swine flu can trigger rheumatoid arthritis, according to a study published online Tuesday in the BMJ journal the Annals of Rheumatic Diseases. Swedish researchers examined 1,998 adults with rheumatoid arthritis compared with 2,252 randomly selected controls matched for age, sex and residency. The researchers found that 582, or 31 percent of the participants with rheumatoid arthritis had been vaccinates and as had 31 percent, or 617, of the randomly selected control patients.
New tales on the internet, much like old-wives tales, often don't hold up to scientific scrutiny.
Such is the case with the idea that immunizations for everything from tetanus to swine flu can trigger rheumatoid arthritis, according to a study published online Tuesday in the BMJ journal the Annals of Rheumatic Diseases.
Swedish researchers examined 1,998 adults with rheumatoid arthritis compared with 2,252 randomly selected controls matched for age, sex and residency. The researchers found that 582, or 31 percent of the participants with rheumatoid arthritis had been vaccinates and as had 31 percent, or 617, of the randomly selected control patients.
The Researchers concluded "In this case-control study of incident cases of newly diagnosed RA, no increased risk of RA following immunization was observed for vaccinations overall or for any specific vaccination. This indicates that immunological provocation of adults with commonly used vaccines in their present form carries no risk of RA."
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