There are concerns for safety regarding SARS-CoV-2 vaccines for patients with autoimmune neuromuscular disease. In this substudy of a prospective observational cohort study (Target-to-B!), the authors compared daily functioning using disease-specific patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) before and after SARS-CoV-2 vaccinations. Patients with myasthenia gravis (MG), chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP), multifocal motor neuropathy (MMN), and idiopathic inflammatory myopathy (IIM) vaccinated against SARS-CoV-2 were included. Surveys of daily functioning (Myasthenia Gravis Activities of Daily Living, Inflammatory Rasch-Built Overall Disability Scale, Multifocal Motor Neuropathy Rasch-Built Overall Disability Scale, and Health Assessment Questionnaire-Disability Index) were sent before first vaccination and every 60 days thereafter for up to 12 months. Regression models were constructed to assess differences in PROM scores related to vaccination, compared to scores unrelated to vaccination. The proportion of patients with deterioration of at least the minimal clinically important difference (MCID) between before first vaccination and 60 days thereafter was also assessed. 325 patients (median age = 59 years, interquartile range = 47-67, 156 [48%] female sex) were included, of whom 137 (42%) had MG, 79 (24%) had CIDP, 43 (13%) had MMN, and 66 (20%) had IIM. PROM scores related to vaccination did not differ from scores unrelated to vaccination. In paired PROMs, MCID for deterioration was observed in three of 49 (6%) MG patients, of whom none reported a treatment change. In CIDP, MCID for deterioration was observed in eight of 29 patients (28%), of whom two of eight (25%) reported a treatment change.
The authors concluded underlying that SARS-CoV-2 vaccination had no effect on daily functioning in patients with autoimmune neuromuscular diseases, confirming its safety in these patients.
van Dam KPJ, Wieske L, Stalman EW, Kummer LYL, van der Kooi AJ, Raaphorst J, van de Beek D, Verschuuren JJGM, Ruiter AM, Brusse E, van Doorn PA, Baars AE, van der Pol WL, Goedee HS, Ten Brinke A, van Ham SM, Rispens T, Kuijpers TW, Eftimov F; T2B! Immunity Against SARS‐CoV‐2 Study Group. Patient-reported daily functioning after SARS-CoV-2 vaccinations in autoimmune neuromuscular diseases. Eur J Neurol. 2024 Dec;31(12):e16409. doi: 10.1111/ene.16409.