VACCINE

Clinical Infectious Disease • August 1992
Chronic arthritis
after rubella vaccination
Author information
Howson CP1, Katz M,
Johnston RB Jr, Fineberg HV.
Division of International Health
Institute of Medicine
Washington, D.C. 20418
Abstract
In August 1991 the Institute of Medicine released a report entitled
“Adverse Effects of Pertussis and Rubella Vaccines” that
examined, among other relations, the relation between immunization
with the RA 27/3 rubella vaccine strain and chronic arthritis.
The committee spent 20 months reviewing a wide range
of information sources including case series and individual
case reports published in peer-reviewed journals and reported
by vaccine manufacturers; unpublished case reports from physicians,
parents, and other concerned persons; epidemiological
studies; and laboratory studies. There were no animal studies
available. The committee found that the evidence is consistent
with a causal relation between the RA 27/3 rubella vaccine
strain and chronic arthritis in adult women, although the evidence
is limited in scope. Proving that rubella vaccination can
cause chronic arthritis will require a better understanding of
pathogenetic mechanisms and additional well-designed studies.
We briefly describe the committee’s evaluative methods
and present the evidence underlying its conclusion.
“The committee found
that the evidence is consistent
with a causal relation between the RA 27/3 rubella
vaccine strain and chronic arthritis in adult women ...”
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/1520764