Drug interactions
Ustekinumab + Yellow fever vaccine
Severity: Major
Ustekinumab and Yellow fever vaccine: major interaction.
Last updated
For healthcare professionals — reference only. This page is a brief summary, not medical advice and not a substitute for official labeling or clinical judgement. Always verify before prescribing or dispensing.
Summary
Yellow fever vaccine is live attenuated and carries a risk of vaccine-associated viscerotropic or neurotropic disease in immunosuppressed patients. Ustekinumab may also impair the response.
What this interaction means in plain words
Ustekinumab and Yellow fever vaccine can interact in a way that may be serious. Using them together is sometimes necessary, but it needs a deliberate decision by the prescriber, a plan for monitoring, and clear advice on the warning signs to watch for.
Why it happens
Immunosuppression via IL-12/23 blockade may permit replication of live attenuated virus.
What to do
Avoid during therapy; if travel to an endemic area is unavoidable, seek specialist advice and consider a medical exemption letter.
What to ask your pharmacist
- Does the benefit of taking both outweigh the risk in my case?
- Do I need any blood test, ECG or other check while on both?
- What early warning signs should I watch for, and what should I do if they appear?
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Other interactions of Ustekinumab
- Bcg vaccine live + Ustekinumab Contraindicated
- Typhoid vaccine live + Ustekinumab Contraindicated
- Adalimumab + Ustekinumab Major
- Adenovirus types 4 and 7 live + Ustekinumab Major
- Alefacept + Ustekinumab Major
- Anakinra + Ustekinumab Major
Frequently asked questions
Can I take Ustekinumab with Yellow fever vaccine?
MediHelp rates the interaction as major. Ustekinumab and Yellow fever vaccine can interact in a way that may be serious. Using them together is sometimes necessary, but it needs a deliberate decision by the prescriber, a plan for monitoring, and clear advice on the warning signs to watch for. Yellow fever vaccine is live attenuated and carries a risk of vaccine-associated viscerotropic or neurotropic disease in immunosuppressed patients. Ustekinumab may also impair the response.
How serious is the interaction between Ustekinumab and Yellow fever vaccine?
MediHelp rates it major, on a four-level scale (minor, moderate, major, contraindicated) based on published labels and references. What to do, in brief: Avoid during therapy; if travel to an endemic area is unavoidable, seek specialist advice and consider a medical exemption letter.
What other medicines interact with Ustekinumab?
MediHelp also lists interactions of Ustekinumab with, for example, Bcg vaccine live, Typhoid vaccine live, Adalimumab. The full list is on the Ustekinumab page.
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