ArticleBMC infectious diseases2021
Reactivation of BCG vaccination scars after vaccination with mRNA-Covid-vaccines: two case reports.
Article in BMC infectious diseases, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 7 papers.
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Who cites it
7 citing papers in PubMed, 18 citations in OpenAlex.
- Reactivation of a Bacillus Calmette-Guérin Scar Following Routine Infant Vaccination.Clinical case reports · 2026Article
- Reactivation of BCG vaccination SCAR after influenza vaccination: a case report.Oxford medical case reports · 2025Article
- Mapping variation of extracellular matrix in human keloid scar by label-free multiphoton imaging and machine learning.Journal of biomedical optics · 2023Article
- Multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children associated with Bacille Calmette-Guérin scar: a case presentation.BMC pediatrics · 2023Article
- Transient inflammation in surgical scars following Covid-19 mRNA vaccination.Journal of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology : JEADV · 2022Article
- No Differences in Wound Healing and Scar Formation Were Observed in Patients With Different COVID-19 Vaccination Intervals.Frontiers in public health · 2022Article
- Erythema and Induration of Bacillus Calmette-Guérin Scar Associated With Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children in Japan: A Case Report.Frontiers in pediatrics · 2022Article
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 5 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundFrom May 2020 to January 2021, we enrolled 1233 health care workers (HCW) from Danish Hospitals in a randomized trial evaluating whether Bacille Calmette-Guérin (BCG) provides protection against COVID-19. Participants were randomized 1:1 to BCG vs saline and followed for 6 months. From December 2020, Covid-19 vaccines were offered to the HCW. In most cases, BCG vaccination results in a characteristic scar. Reactivation of the BCG scar has been described in children during viral infections and following influenza vaccination, but is mostly associated to Kawasaki's disease, a disease entity with pathogenesis likely similar to the child Covid-19 complication MIS-C: Multi-System Inflammatory Syndrome. Reactivation of scars after neonatal BCG vaccination has recently been described in four women after Covid-19 mRNA vaccination. Two of our trial participants experienced reactivation of their novel BCG scars after receiving mRNA Covid-19 vaccination 6 to 8 months post-BCG. CASE PRESENTATIONS: Two female HCW participants that had been randomly allocated to BCG in the BCG-DENMARK-COVID trial, spontaneously reported itching and secretion at the BCG scar site after having received mRNA Covid-19 vaccination (Moderna and Pfizer-BioNTech) 6 to 8 months following inclusion and BCG vaccination. One participant, who had a larger BCG skin reaction, noticed re-appearing symptoms after both the first and the second COVID-vaccine dose, while the other participant only noted symptoms after the second dose. Both had been BCG vaccinated during childhood, and no reactivation was noted in the older scars. No treatment was needed or provided.
conclusionsThe reactivation of the BCG scar after receiving mRNA vaccine might have been caused by cross-reactivity between BCG and SARS-CoV-2. In both cases, the symptoms were bothersome, but self-limiting and left no sequelae. The risk of reactivation at the scar site is thus not a reason to avoid vaccination with either vaccine.
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