vaccines

I recently got my yearly influenza vaccine, which protects against the flu. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), “In an average year, thousands of people in the United States die from flu, and many more are hospitalized. Flu vaccine prevents millions of illnesses and…

Well, it’s that time of the year again: flu season. I guess you could say it’s COVID-19 season, too, though confirmed and probable cases of COVID-19 started increasing in late June here in Kansas City, Missouri, and continued to rise at least through August. Detection of COVID-19 through wastewater…

Two inverse vaccines from Nykode Therapeutics — developed to teach the immune system not to respond against its own body — worked to reduce disease severity in a mouse model of multiple sclerosis (MS), new data show. This adds to earlier findings that the company’s experimental approach and…

My wife and I got the latest COVID-19 vaccine the other day, the first of three vaccines we’ll be getting this fall. The others are the seasonal flu vaccine and the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccine. This was my sixth COVID-19 vaccine, and I’ve received a…

People with multiple sclerosis (MS) should generally follow a regular vaccination schedule similar to their healthy peers, with certain adjustments made if they’re on particular disease-modifying therapies (DMTs), according to a group of experts in Europe who devised a set of more than 50 evidence-based guidelines for the…

Am I about to share my first conspiracy theory, even if it’s just about me? Why not? It’s all the rage, though this one may have a loose connection to a possible truth. Stick with the story, please. It requires some scene-setting. It was years ago, at the end of…

Multiple Sclerosis News Today brought you daily coverage of the latest scientific research, advances in treatment, and clinical trials related to multiple sclerosis (MS) throughout 2021. We look forward to continuing to be a resource for the MS community in 2022. Here are the Top 10 most-read articles of…

There are continuing signals that the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is a fuel that can spark a multiple sclerosis (MS) fire. EBV is a herpes virus that causes infectious mononucleosis, more commonly known as mono. Sometimes called the “kissing disease” because the virus that causes it is easily spread through saliva,…

A couple weeks ago, my wife and I rolled up our sleeves and got our shots again. No, not the COVID-19 vaccine. We’ve already had two of those, and expect to receive a third before Thanksgiving. The latest shot was a seasonal flu vaccine, which we’ve gotten every year…

Now that a third COVID-19 vaccine shot has been approved in the U.S. for immunocompromised people, and vaccine boosters are expected to be available to the general public sometime after Sept. 20, Walgreens and CVS have lost no time in offering the additional shot to those who qualify.

Editor’s note: The Multiple Sclerosis News Today team is providing in-depth coverage of the 2021 Virtual AAN Annual Meeting, held April 17–22. Go here to read stories from the conference. After starting treatment with the multiple sclerosis (MS) therapy Mavenclad (cladribine), some types of immune cells are more affected…

This is the time of year when my wife and I start thinking about getting our flu shots. We’ve already had the pneumonia and the older shingles vaccine and hope to soon update with the new shingles vaccine, Shingrix (recombinant zoster vaccine). These vaccines are OK with my neurologist and…

New guidelines from the American Academy of Neurology (AAN) recommend that people with multiple sclerosis (MS) keep up with regular vaccinations, including annual flu shots, but be sure to first advise their doctor on medications they are using. The guidelines were published in the journal Neurology, in the report…

Vaccines are not a risk factor for multiple sclerosis (MS), a large data analysis spanning more than 12,250 MS patients in Germany shows. Fewer vaccinations were given to people who — five years later — would be diagnosed with MS, compared to those who would be diagnosed with…

The start of flu season here in the United States is just a few weeks away. It’s time for my wife and me to get our flu shots, just as we have for as long as I can remember. My neurologist and our primary care physician both recommend the…

Should those of us with multiple sclerosis get vaccinated for influenza or not? It’s a debate that takes place in many MS communities each fall. The argument against the flu immunization is based on half-truths and flat-out misconceptions — and a lot of anecdotal tales that don’t hold up to…

A post on another website, asking about whether it was wise for someone with Multiple Sclerosis to receive the shingles vaccine, caught my attention the other day. “Have any of you had the Shingles vaccine? I’m still debating about it. I’m concerned about insulting my immune system…

Scientists discovered two key players — TBK1 and ICOS — that control the effective production of antibodies and may offer new insights into potential therapies for autoimmune diseases, including multiple sclerosis. The study, “A TRAF-like motif of the inducible costimulator ICOS controls development of germinal center TFH cells via the…

A new study entitled, “Vaccines and the Risk of Multiple Sclerosis and Other Central Nervous System Demyelinating Diseases” published in the JAMA Neurology journal, reports that no association was observed between vaccinations and an increased risk for Multiple Sclerosis or other central nervous system…