Outcomes of COVID-19 Vaccination-Related Incidental Axillary Adenopathy in Women Undergoing Breast MRI.

Abstract

ObjectiveTo assess the frequency, management, and early outcomes of COVID-19 vaccine–related adenopathy on breast MRI.MethodsThis IRB-exempt retrospective study reviewed patients who underwent breast MRI following COVID-19 vaccine approval in the U.S. from December 14, 2020, to April 11, 2021 (N = 1912) and compared patients who underwent breast MRI the year prior to the pandemic, March 13, 2019, to March 12, 2020 (N = 5342). Study indication, patient age, date of study, date and type of vaccination(s), time difference between study and vaccinations, lymph node–specific and overall management recommendations, and outcomes of additional examinations were recorded. Differences in the final assessment categories between the subjects scanned pre-pandemic and post-vaccine were compared using the Fisher exact test.ResultsVaccine-related adenopathy was mentioned in 67 breast MRI reports; only 1 in the pre-pandemic group. There were no clinically relevant differences in patient demographics between groups. There was a statistically significant increase in BI-RADS 0 assessments between the pre-pandemic and post-vaccine approval groups—0.8% (45/5342) versus 1.8% (34/1912) (P = 0.001) and BI-RADS 3 assessments—6.5% (348/5342) versus 9.2% (176/1912) (P < 0.0001). Of the 29 patients who underwent additional imaging (range, 2–94 days following MRI) and the 2 patients who underwent biopsy, 47% (31/66), none were found to have malignant adenopathy.ConclusionCOVID-19 vaccination is associated with transient axillary adenopathy of variable duration. This leads to additional imaging in women undergoing breast MRI, so far with benign outcomes, and this may affect audits of outcomes of MRI.