What is SIRVA? | Shoulder Injuries from Vaccines

SIRVA stands for Shoulder Injury Related to Vaccine Administration. This vaccine injury happens when vaccination is improperly administered.

Instead of injecting the vaccine into the deltoid muscle, it is injected into the shoulder capsule. As a result, the shoulder becomes inflamed. Patients can experience a range of symptoms, including pain, decreased range of motion, and loss of function or disability.

SIRVA injuries are often underreported due to both patients’ and doctors’ unfamiliarity with the injury. The good news is that the Vaccine Injury Compensation Program has recognized SIRVA’s prevalence. On February 21, 2017, it added SIRVA to its Vaccine Injury Table for all covered vaccines, including the flu shot.

What Vaccines Cause Shoulder Injuries?

Any vaccine administered intramuscularly in the shoulder can cause SIRVA. As mentioned above, SIRVA is caused by a vaccine being administered in the shoulder joint. This triggers an inflammatory reaction that causes damage to the bursa, tendons, and ligaments.

That is why we see a range of shoulder injury diagnoses related to vaccine administration. As a vaccine injury lawyer, I have seen patients diagnosed with bursitis, rotator cuff tears, and adhesive capsulitis.

These injuries caused by SIRVA will not look any different from a patient who developed shoulder inflammation. That’s partly why so many of these SIRVA cases go unreported or undetected.

How do I know if I Have a SIRVA Injury?

To start, a SIRVA injury develops within 48 hours of the vaccine administration. When it comes to other shoulder injuries, they will happen from another injury, not after receiving a vaccine injection.

If you want to pursue compensation for your SIRVA injury, your symptoms must have developed within 48 hours of receiving the vaccine.

But that’s not the only criteria for a shoulder injury from vaccination.

In order to prove a SIRVA injury in vaccine court, you must meet the following requirements:

1. You never had a prior shoulder injury. Your past medical history is always going to be an important aspect of a vaccine injury claim. A prior torn rotator cuff injury or bursitis diagnosis may preclude you from compensation when alleging a SIRVA injury without strong evidence.
2. You experienced shoulder pain within a 48-hour window after receiving the vaccine. If you believe you have a SIRVA injury, seek treatment as soon as possible.
3. You don’t have any other preexisting neurological condition that would explain your shoulder injury symptoms.

If you meet the above criteria for SIRVA, there is a presumption that the vaccine caused your injury.

On the other hand, if you don’t the above criteria, your path to compensation may be difficult. However, it’s not impossible to prove your SIRVA case if you have enough evidence on your side.

Suffering from a SIRVA injury? Contact us today

If you believe you have suffered a shoulder injury due to the administration of a vaccine, you are not alone. You may be entitled to compensation under the Vaccine Injury Compensation Program.

Call our vaccine injury lawyers anytime at (312) 578-9501 or message us here. Our consultations and case reviews are always free.