Safety and Tolerability of COVID-19 Vaccination in Children and Adolescents with Epilepsy: A Multicenter Questionnaire Study
Abstract number :
2.397
Submission category :
17. Public Health
Year :
2022
Submission ID :
2204112
Source :
www.aesnet.org
Presentation date :
12/4/2022 12:00:00 PM
Published date :
Nov 22, 2022, 05:23 AM
Authors :
Yoshiyuki Kobayashi, MD – Hiroshima university hospital; Nobutsune Ishikawa, MD – Hiroshima university hospital; Yuichi Tateishi, MD – Hiroshima university hospital; Hiroki Izumo, MD – Hiroshima university hospital; Yuta Eguchi, MD – Hiroshima university hospital; Yuji Fujii, MD – Hiroshima City Funairi Citizens Hospital; Hiroaki Ono, MD – Hiroshima Prefectural Hospital; Satoshi Okada, MD, PhD – Hiroshima university hospital
Rationale: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), and was first seen in December 2019. SARS-CoV-2 became a pandemic and has affected almost all countries in the world, including Japan. One of the most important countermeasures against this pandemic is vaccination, which boosts population immunity, reduces disease severity, and thus should alleviate the current health crisis. Our study investigated the tolerability and safety of coronavirus vaccines in children and adolescents with epilepsy (CAWE).
Methods: To assess tolerability and safety after immunization, we administered a structured questionnaire to CAWE who visited the Departments of Pediatrics of Hiroshima University Hospital, Hiroshima Prefectural Hospital, and Hiroshima City Funairi Citizens Hospital from January to February in 2022. Questions were answered by the patients themselves where possible, and by the family members and caregivers of mentally retarded persons and young children who had difficulty answering the questions. This study was approved by the Hiroshima University Institutional Review Board.
Results: A total of 114 vaccinations were performed in 57 CAWE aged 12 to 25 years (mean age, 15 ± 3.1) years). Of the 57 vaccinated patients, 52 (91.2%) experienced at least one adverse event post-vaccination. The most commonly reported adverse events were fever (dose 1, 33.3%; dose 2, 73.7%) and fatigue (dose 1, 24.6%; dose 2, 50.9%). Headache (21.0% vs. 5.2%, p=0.024), fever (73.7% vs. 33.3%, p< 0.001), and fatigue (50.9% vs. 24.6%, p=0.004) were adverse events that differed significantly between the first and second vaccine doses. Only 5.2% of the patients experienced a transient increase in seizure frequency, worsening seizure symptoms, and altered seizure semiology.
Public Health