Safety and immunogenicity of the live-attenuated varicella vaccine in pediatric solid organ transplant recipients: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Resource type
Journal Article
Authors/contributors
Title
Safety and immunogenicity of the live-attenuated varicella vaccine in pediatric solid organ transplant recipients: A systematic review and meta-analysis
Abstract
This study aimed to synthesize the available evidence on the immunogenicity, safety, and effectiveness of live-attenuated varicella vaccine in solid organ transplant recipients. Medline and EMBASE were searched using predefined search terms to identify relevant studies. The included articles reported varicella vaccine administration in the posttransplant period in children and adults. A pooled proportion of transplant recipients who seroconverted and who developed vaccine-strain varicella and varicella disease was generated. Eighteen articles (14 observational studies and 4 case reports) were included, reporting on 711 transplant recipients who received the varicella vaccine. The pooled proportion was 88.2% (95% confidence interval 78.0%-96.0%, 13 studies) for vaccinees who seroconverted, 0% (0%-1.2%, 13 studies) for vaccine-strain varicella, and 0.8% (0%-4.9%, 9 studies) for varicella disease. Most studies followed clinical guidelines for administering live-attenuated vaccines, with criteria that could include being at least 1 year posttransplant, 2 months postrejection episode, and on low-dose immunosuppressive medications. Varicella vaccination in transplant recipients was overall safe in the included studies, with few cases of vaccine-strain-induced varicella or vaccine failure, and although it was immunogenic, the proportion of recipients who seroconverted was lower than that seen in the general population. Our data support varicella vaccination in select pediatric solid organ transplant recipients.
Publication
American Journal of Transplantation
Date
2023-06-13
Journal Abbr
American Journal of Transplantation
Accessed
7/27/23, 6:42 AM
ISSN
1600-6135
Short Title
Safety and immunogenicity of the live-attenuated varicella vaccine in pediatric solid organ transplant recipients
Language
en
Library Catalog
ScienceDirect
Citation
Piché-Renaud, P.-P., Yue Lee, E., Ji, C., Qing Huang, J. Y., Uleryk, E., Teoh, C. W., Morris, S. K., Top, K. A., Upton, J. E. M., Vyas, M. V., & Allen, U. D. (2023). Safety and immunogenicity of the live-attenuated varicella vaccine in pediatric solid organ transplant recipients: A systematic review and meta-analysis. American Journal of Transplantation. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajt.2023.06.008
ORGANISMS
PREVENTION
SOLID ORGANS AND MCSS