NEW YORK — Reports of a rare nervous system disorder were “more common than expected” in older U.S. adults who received the new RSV vaccines, according to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released Thursday. , similar to what the organization said earlier this year.
Government officials still say the benefits of the shots still outweigh the risks.
The CDC and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration say they are evaluating any risks, but they do not plan to change their recommendation for RSV vaccines, which is that patients 60 and older should talk to their doctor and then decide whether to be vaccinated.
More than 10 million older adults have received single-dose shots from Pfizer or GSK since early August to protect against respiratory syncytial virus, which is a common cause of cold-like symptoms and can be dangerous for babies and the elderly .
Health officials have estimated about two cases of Guillain-Barré syndrome in every 1 million people who receive the RSV vaccine within three weeks of receiving the vaccine.
The new CDC report focused on 28 cases of the syndrome in people who were vaccinated, and all but one developed symptoms within 21 days. This translated to 1.5 cases per million in people who received the GSK RSV vaccine and five cases per million in people who received the Pfizer vaccine.
CDC officials presented similar findings about RSV shots and Guillain-Barre syndrome at a public meeting in February.
An estimated 3,000 to 6,000 people develop Guillain-Barre syndrome in the U.S. each year — either after being infected by a virus or associated with a vaccination — and it’s more common in older people, according to the CDC. Most people recover fully, but some experience permanent nerve damage.
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