New Japanese Rubella Vaccine: Comparative Trials

A total of 142 seronegative volunteers were given one of the following rubella vaccines: Cendehill, HPV77. DE-5, RA27/3, or a new Japanese vaccine, To-336. To-336 vaccine produced a slightly higher geometric mean antibody titre (G.M.T.) (65·7) than did the HPV77. DE-5 (63·1) or RA27/3 vaccine (61·9) but the G.M.T. induced by Cendehill vaccine was much lower (39·3).Reactions, particularly joint symptoms, occurred least commonly after vaccination with To-336 vaccine. Joint symptoms occurred within seven days of menstruation in 30 out of 37 (81%) vaccines (P <0·01); their incidence was not related to oral contraception.Though there is evidence to suggest that Japanese virus strains may be non-teratogenic further data on the incidence of congenitally acquired infection in Japan must be collected before this conclusion can be supported on epidemiological grounds.