• Lancet. 2003 Jun 28;361(9376):2169-70.

Differences in female-male mortality after high-titre measles vaccine and association with subsequent vaccination with diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis and inactivated poliovirus: reanalysis of West African studies.

Aaby P, Jensen H, Samb B, Cisse B, Sodemann M, Jakobsen M, Poulsen A, Rodrigues A, Lisse IM, Simondon F, Whittle H.

Projecto de Saude de Bandim, Danish Epidemiology Science Centre, Apartado 861, Bissau, Guinea-Bissau. psb@mail.gtelecom.gw <psb@mail.gtelecom.gw>

BACKGROUND: Females given high-titre measles vaccine (HTMV) have high mortality; diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis (DTP) vaccination might be associated with increased female mortality. We aimed to assess whether DTP or inactivated poliovirus (IPV) administered after HTMV was associated with increased female-male mortality ratio. METHODS: In three trials from West Africa, 2000 children were randomised to HTMV or control vaccine at 4-5 months of age; a second vaccination was given at age 9-10 months (standard measles vaccine). Children in high-titre groups were given IPV or DTP-IPV. Another 944 children received HTMV as routine vaccination in Senegal. FINDINGS: When we compared high-titre and control groups, no difference in mortality between the first and the second vaccination was noted. After the second vaccination, the female-male mortality ratio was 1.84 (95% CI 1.19-2.84) in children in the high-titre groups who received DTP-IPV or IPV, and 0.59 (0.34-1.04) in controls who received standard measles vaccine (p=0.007). Children who received HTMV but no additional DTP-IPV or IPV had a female-male mortality ratio of 0.83 (0.41-1.67). This ratio was 2.22 (1.04-4.71) for children who received DTP-IPV after routine HTMV and 1.00 (0.68-1.47) for those who did not. When we combined the results from all trials, the female-male mortality ratio was 1.93 (1.33-2.81) for those who received DTP or IPV after HTMV, and 0.96 (0.69-1.34) for those who did not (p=0.006). INTERPRETATION: A change in sequence of vaccinations, rather than HTMV itself, may have been the cause of increased female mortality in these trials.

PMID: 12842371 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]