"Although preliminary, these reported cases of GBS do not appear to show an increased risk of GBS following vaccination with either the 2009 H1N1 or the seasonal flu strain and the safety record for these vaccines is excellent," said study author Nizar Souayah, MD, with New Jersey Medical School in Newark. "CDC, FDA and neurologists around the world are continuing to closely monitor people after vaccination for this disease."

Since VAERS receives voluntary reports of adverse events from manufacturers, providers, vaccines, and caregivers, cases of illness may be either over or underreported, and calculation of actual rates is not possible. VAERS cannot determine cause-and-effect, and an adverse event report only indicates that the event occurred sometime after vaccination. The American Academy of Neurology, along with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reached out to neurologists in the fall of 2009, requesting that they report to VAERS any possible new cases of GBS following receipt of vaccination.

SOURCE American Academy of Neurology