Pandemrix is an influenza vaccination, created in 2009 to combat H1N1 virus (image), known as Swine Flu. Now, according to a January 21, 2014 press release from the Journal of Internal Medicine, a team of Swedish clinicians testing the vaccine for links to immune-related or neurological diseases has linked Pandemrix to an increased risk of narcolepsy in young adults. Using a population-based prospective cohort study, the team analyzed data from regional vaccination registries and national health registries, covering seven healthcare regions and 61% of the Swedish population. While the team did not identify any link to a large number of immune-related or neurological diseases, they did confirm an increased risk in diagnosis of narcolepsy in individuals younger than 20 years of age, and observed a trend towards an increased risk amongst young adults between 21 and 30. “The follow-up of Pandemrix vaccinations in a large registry based study in Sweden confirms an increased risk of narcolepsy in children and adolescents, while also providing reassuring results for a large number of other neurological and immune related diseases,” said Dr. I. Persson from the Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm. [Press release]
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