Evaluating Postvaccine Symptoms Among Patients With IBD

A study evaluating the post-vaccine symptoms after a third dose of mRNA SARS-CoV-2 vaccination in patients with inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) confirmed that the general symptoms, with the exception of gastrointestinal symptoms, were definitely milder and less frequent, compared to the second vaccine dose.

“Our findings can reassure the IBD patients and providers that the likelihood and distribution of symptoms after a third mRNA vaccine dose are generally similar to those after a second dose and that fewer people experienced postvaccination symptoms after dose 3 than after dose 2 for most organ systems,” the investigators explained. “Postvaccination symptoms appear to occur less frequently in IBD than in the general population, although further evaluation of postvaccination gastrointestinal symptoms among those with IBD is warranted.”

The team compared symptoms after the third dose of SARS-CoV-2 mRNA vaccine with symptoms after the second dose among 594 patients with IBD. They evaluated safety, symptom frequency, and severity of symptoms postvaccination.

Overall, 41% of the total patients reported symptoms after the third dose. The most frequent postvaccination symptom was injection site pain (39%), fatigue or malaise (34%), headache (23%), and muscle, bone, and joint symptoms (13%). All of these symptoms were less frequently reported after dose 3 vs after dose 2. The only symptoms more frequently reported after dose 3 as compared to dose 2 were gastrointestinal symptoms, which rose by 7.8% after the third dose.

In terms of severity of the symptoms, most of the study population (75%) experienced none or mild symptom severity after both doses. In fact, among patients who reported high severity of symptoms after dose 2, only 34% of those experienced similar severity after dose 3.

“Our finding that gastrointestinal symptoms after a third dose were slightly higher than after a second dose raises the question about whether these represented postvaccination reactions or coincidental exacerbation of IBD,” the authors note. However, the consensus is that the mRNA SARS-CoV-2 vaccination has proved to be safe and effective after dose 3 among the general population as well as patients with IBD.

—Priyam Vora

Reference:
Li D, Debbas P, Mujukian A et al. Postvaccination symptoms after a third dose of mRNA SARS-CoV-2 vaccination in patients with inflammatory bowel disease: Results from CORALE-IBD, Inflamm Bowel Dis. Published online: August 23, 2022. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/ibd/izac174