Covid-19 infection more likely to trigger multiple sclerosis than vaccines

A widely shared video clip has claimed the World Health Organisation (WHO) has admitted Covid-19 vaccines can cause multiple sclerosis (MS).

The full video, titled  Vaccination And Multiple Sclerosis, was uploaded on May 29 to the YouTube channel of Dr John Campbell and has 1.1 million views on the site to date.

A clip uploaded to the globalfaction Instagram account, which has more than 50,000 followers, gained more than 8,600 likes and the same clip has been shared on Facebook more than 800 times – as recently as July 26.

Evaluation: Misleading

The claim was based on the inclusion of an abstract in the WHO Covid-19 Research Database that summarises a study that found a potential link to coronavirus vaccines in two cases of MS.

While the research found a potential link, it did not prove the disease was caused by the vaccine, according to both the WHO and MS experts.

One of the study authors added that while the research showed a link in these two cases, their data showed a Covid-19 infection carried a higher risk of triggering MS than the vaccine did.

The facts

Multiple sclerosis is a neurological condition that affects your brain and spinal cord. It damages the coating that protects your nerves (myelin) which can disrupt signals travelling from your brain and causes a range of symptoms like blurred vision and problems with how you move think and feel.

The MS Society estimates there are more than 130,000 people with MS in the UK, with nearly 7,000 newly diagnosed each year.

The World Health Organisation said: “There is no conclusive link between multiple sclerosis (MS) and Covid-19 vaccination.

“To WHO’s knowledge, the results of one case-control study could indicate a correlation between multiple sclerosis and Covid-19 vaccination.

“It is too early to draw conclusions from this study as case-control studies do not establish causation but instead establish likely links between two events, that warrant further study.”

It added that the study also referenced different vaccines linked to cases of MS, which again would require further research before conclusions are drawn, and it asserted that the Covid-19 vaccines have been “proved to be safe and effective”.

Dr Clare Walton, head of research at the MS Society, told the PA news agency the study does not “prove” a vaccine caused the disease.

She said: “These two cases and other rare examples of someone being diagnosed with MS having recently had an mRNA Covid-19 vaccine, don’t prove the vaccine has caused MS.

“It’s possible, for example, that the vaccination could be triggering an existing pre-symptomatic case of MS or the timing could be a rare coincidence.”

Dr Walton added that “further research” would be needed to understand whether the vaccine could lead to the onset of the disease and she added that people should not be discouraged from having the jab.

“Any rare link with the onset of MS or other autoimmune conditions, if proven, would be significantly less common than the many known potential long-term side effects of Covid-19 infection itself,” she said.

The study – titled Covid-19 Vaccination Can Induce Multiple Sclerosis Via Cross-Reactive CD4+ T Cells Recognising Sars-CoV-2 Spike Protein And Myelin Peptides – was written by researchers at the University Hospital of Zurich in Switzerland and submitted to the European Committee For Treatment And Research In Multiple Sclerosis (ECTRIMS) conference in 2022.

Roland Martin, a neurology professor at the University of Zurich who was one of the study’s authors, said the research showed it was “very likely to probable” that the vaccination was “related” to the onset of MS in the two patients examined.

“These individuals had probably a number of predisposing factors… but the data indicate(s) a connection,” he added.

The professor said the cause of MS involves genetics and environmental risk factors.

“In such susceptible individuals, the disease can probably be kicked off by a number of factors, and our data indicate(s) that Sars-CoV-2 infection – more likely than the vaccination – and vaccination can be one of these factors.”

He added: “Let me say at the end, I am (a) firm believer in the vaccination and recommend it to everybody including our patients.

“However, like many things in life, the vaccination comes with certain risks that should not be negated.”

Links

Full YouTube video with the claim (archived post and video)

Claim on Instagram (archived post and video)

Claim on Facebook (archived post and video)

The study’s abstract (archived)

MS Society website (archived)

Details of the study (archived)

Prof Roland Martin biography (archived)

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