Reduction in stroke incidence observed in first 59 days after influenza vaccination
FRIDAY, Oct. 16, 2015 (HealthDay News) — Influenza vaccination is associated with reduced stroke incidence, according to a study published Oct. 5 in Vaccine.
Zahid Asghar, Ph.D., from the University of Lincoln in the United Kingdom, and colleagues examined whether influenza vaccination correlates with reduced risk of stroke using data from the General Practice Research Database. During the observation period, there were 17,853 eligible individuals who received one or more influenza vaccinations and experienced a stroke from September 2001 to May 2009.
The researchers found that stroke incidence was significantly reduced in the first 59 days after influenza vaccination relative to baseline. Reductions of 55, 36, 30, 24, and 17 percent were seen at one to three, four to seven, eight to 14, 15 to 28, and 29 to 59 days after vaccination, respectively. The reduction in incidence was greater for those vaccinated between Sept. 1 and Nov. 15 compared with those vaccinated after mid-November.
“Influenza vaccination is associated with a reduction in incidence of stroke,” the authors write. “This study supports previous studies which have shown a beneficial association of influenza vaccination for stroke prevention.”
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