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Post-vaccination headache reporting: Trends according to the Vaccine Adverse Events Reporting System.
Cocores, Alexandra N; Goadsby, Peter J; Monteith, Teshamae S.
  • Cocores AN; Department of Neurology, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Miami, Florida, USA.
  • Goadsby PJ; NIHR King's Clinical Research Facility & Headache Group-Wolfson CARD, King's College London, London, UK.
  • Monteith TS; Department of Neurology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA.
Headache ; 63(2): 275-282, 2023 02.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-2171097
ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE:

To assess the characteristics and associated disability of headache as an adverse event following vaccination.

BACKGROUND:

According to clinical trials and post-licensure surveillance, headache is a common symptom of vaccines, yet systematic investigations of post-licensure reports of this adverse event are lacking.

METHODS:

This was a retrospective database analysis study. We searched the Vaccine Adverse Events Reporting System (VAERS) database completed from July 1990 to June 2020 (a 30-year period prior to the start of COVID-19 pandemic) to identify reports of headache. We evaluated epidemiological features, including event characteristics, patient demographics, and vaccine type.

RESULTS:

In those aged 3 years or older, headache was the fifth most reported adverse symptom, present in 8.1% (43,218/536,120) of all reports. Of headache reports, 96.3% (41,635/43,218) included the code "headache" not further specified. Migraine was coded in 1973 cases, although almost one-third (12,467/41,808; 29.8%) of headache reports without a migraine code mention nausea or vomiting. The onset of symptoms was within 1 day of vaccination in over two-thirds of cases. The majority of reports were classified as not serious; about one-third involved emergency room or office visits. Of the 43,218 total headache reports, only a minority involved hospitalizations (2624; 6.1%) or permanent disability (1091; 2.5%), females accounted for 68.9% (29,771) and males for 29.5% (12,725), patients aged 6 to 59 years represented 67.3% (29,112), and over one-third of cases were reported after herpes zoster (8665; 20.1%) and influenza (6748; 15.6%) vaccinations.

CONCLUSION:

In a national surveillance system, headache was a commonly reported post-vaccination adverse event; a small subset of reports was considered serious. The development of standardized vaccine-related case definitions could be useful for better evaluating headache as an adverse event during vaccine development, and may reduce vaccine hesitancy especially in headache-prone individuals.
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Full text: Available Collection: International databases Database: MEDLINE Main subject: Vaccination / Headache / Migraine Disorders Type of study: Experimental Studies / Observational study / Prognostic study / Systematic review/Meta Analysis Topics: Vaccines / Variants Limits: Adolescent / Adult / Child / Female / Humans / Male / Middle aged / Young adult Country/Region as subject: North America Language: English Journal: Headache Year: 2023 Document Type: Article Affiliation country: Head.14458

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Full text: Available Collection: International databases Database: MEDLINE Main subject: Vaccination / Headache / Migraine Disorders Type of study: Experimental Studies / Observational study / Prognostic study / Systematic review/Meta Analysis Topics: Vaccines / Variants Limits: Adolescent / Adult / Child / Female / Humans / Male / Middle aged / Young adult Country/Region as subject: North America Language: English Journal: Headache Year: 2023 Document Type: Article Affiliation country: Head.14458