Acute Transverse Myelitis Following COVID-19 Vaccination

Overview

Journal Vaccines (Basel)

Date 2021 Sep 28

PMID 34579245

Citations 32

Authors

Jhih-Jian Gao

Hung-Pin Tseng

Chun-Liang Lin

Jr-Shiang Shiu

Ming-Hsun Lee

Ching-Hsiung Liu

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

An increasing number of people are undergoing vaccination for COVID-19 because of the ongoing pandemic. The newly developed, genetically engineered mRNA vaccines are critical for controlling the epidemic disease. However, major adverse effects, including neuroimmunological disorders, are being attributed to this vaccine. For instance, several cases of acute transverse myelitis (ATM) after COVID-19 vaccination have been reported in clinical trials. Here, we report an exceedingly rare case of longitudinally extensive transverse myelitis (LETM), a rare subtype of ATM involving three or more vertebral segments, that occurred shortly after vaccination with the Moderna COVID-19 (mRNA-1273) vaccine, with a comorbidity of vitamin B12 deficiency. The findings of subsequent investigations suggest the possibility that autoimmune responses are triggered by the reactions between anti-SARS-CoV-2 spike protein antibodies and tissue proteins, as well as the interaction between spike proteins and angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 receptors.

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