Authors' objectives: To determine whether there is any evidence to support the (causal) association on the development of trigeminal neuralgia post mRNA (Pfizer) Covid-19 vaccination and if such an association exists, how soon does trigeminal neuralgia develop after vaccination?

Authors' results and conclusions: Fifteen published studies were identified in our literature search. Upon examination on the titles and abstracts of these 15 studies, five studies were thought to be relevant and were retrieved in full for further appraisal. One of the five studies that were retrieved in full presented a case on patient diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis and Sjogren’s syndrome; hence was not relevant to this systematic review and will not be discussed further. Two further studies were identified from manual searches. However, one study was not relevant to the objective of this systematic review and will not be discussed further. Of the five relevant studies that were retrieved in full, four studies were in the form of case reports, level of evidence 4 and one was published as an abstract only paper, was a case series, level of evidence 4 reporting on trigeminal neuralgia identified from the World Health Organization (WHO) global database of reported potential side effects of medicinal products (VigiBase). At present, there may be some evidence, coming from case reports, (level of evidence 4) on individual level causality on the development of trigeminal neuralgia post Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccination, as early as 12 hours post-vaccination. At present, there is lack of population level evidence to suggest causal association on the development of trigeminal neuralgia post Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccination. Of the reported individual level evidence, the authors cautioned on drawing causal association inferences between Covid-19 vaccination and the development of trigeminal neuralgia, given the available data.

Authors' methods: A comprehensive and systematic literature search was done on March 14, 2024. The search was done on commercial medical literature databases. Combination of keywords were employed in this search. No limitation, such as on the language or date of publication was implemented in this search. A manual search was also done on the references of the articles that were retrieved in full. In our previous systematic review, investigating the development of tinnitus post Covid-19 vaccination, we outlined our approach in assessing causal association of adverse events following immunization. This causal association appraisal approach relied heavily on the approach developed by the World Health Organization (WHO). Briefly, causality on an adverse event following immunization (AEFI) should be assessed on two levels including at the population and the individual level.

Project Status: Completed

URL for project: https://www.worksafebc.com/en/about-us/research-services/evidence-based-medicine-and-systematic-reviews

Year Published: 2024

URL for published report: https://www.worksafebc.com/en/resources/health-care-providers/guides/causal-association-development-trigeminal-neuralgia-post-mrna-covid-9-vaccination?lang=en&origin=s&returnurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.worksafebc.com%2Fen%2Fforms-resources%23sort%3DDate%26q%3DCausal%2520Association%2520on%2520the%2520Development%2520of%2520Trigeminal%2520Neuralgia%2520Post%2520Covid-19%2520Vaccine%26f%3Alanguage-facet%3D%5BEnglish%5D%26tags%3DGuide%7C2d7eb4b30f6a4a319e0d40565c9abbab%2CHealth%2520Care%2520Provider%7C13468b0b3f074f6bade3f57ac3cdfb8e%2CSystematic%2520Review%7Cf78c29d570c14ec3b5a394385905df70&highlight=Causal%20Association%20on%20the%20Development%20of%20Trigeminal%20Neuralgia%20Post%20Covid-19%20Vaccine

English language abstract: An English language summary is available

Publication Type: Mini HTA

Country: Canada

Organisation Name: WorkSafeBC

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