MMR vaccine cut hospitalizations for unrelated respiratory infections

The MMR vaccine appears to reduce pediatric hospitalizations not only for measles and mumps, but also for unrelated respiratory infections, said Giuseppe La Torre of the Sapienza University of Rome and his associates.

The 2-year retrospective database study included 11,004 children, 21% of whom did not receive the MMR vaccine; 49% received one dose, and 30% received two doses. There were 12 hospitalizations for measles (9 in unvaccinated children, 3 in those who received one dose, and none in those who received two doses), 2 hospitalizations for mumps (1 among vaccinated and 1 among unvaccinated children), and no hospitalizations for rubella (P less than .001).

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There were 414 hospitalizations for all infectious diseases, 11% in unvaccinated children, 1.5% in those who had received one dose of vaccine, and 1% in those who had received two doses (P less than .001). MMR vaccine also was highly protective against hospitalizations for all infectious diseases (HR, 0.29).

Of 809 hospitalizations for respiratory diseases, 18% involved children who had not been vaccinated, 4% involved children who had received one dose, and 5.5% involved children vaccinated with two doses (P less than .001). MMR likewise was highly protective against hospitalizations for respiratory diseases (HR, 0.18).

Read more in the journal Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics (2017 Jun 12. doi: 10.1080/21645515.2017.1330733).

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