Drug Database: Smallpox and Mpox Vaccine

What is Jynneos? What is Jynneos?

What is Jynneos?

Jynneos is a vaccine approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to prevent smallpox and mpox in adults who are at high risk for smallpox or mpox infection. (Smallpox and mpox are related viral infections that can cause similar symptoms, but mpox symptoms are generally milder than smallpox symptoms.)

An Emergency Use Authorization (EUA) issued by the FDA in August 2022 allows for the Jynneos vaccine to also be used in people younger than 18 years of age who are at high risk for mpox. (An EUA allows FDA to expedite the availability and use of medical products during a public health emergency.)

Mpox can be an opportunistic infection (OI) of HIV. An OI is an infection that occurs more frequently or is more severe in people with weakened immune systems—such as people with HIV—than in people with healthy immune systems. To learn more about OIs, read the HIVinfo What is an Opportunistic Infection? fact sheet.

The Guidelines for the Prevention and Treatment of Opportunistic Infections in Adults and Adolescents with HIV and/or the Guidelines for the Prevention and Treatment of Opportunistic Infections in Children with and Exposed to HIV include recommendations on the use of Jynneos in people with HIV.

What should I tell my health care provider before receiving Jynneos? What should I tell my health care provider before receiving Jynneos?

What should I tell my health care provider before receiving Jynneos?

Before receiving Jynneos, tell your health care provider:

• If you are allergic to any ingredients in Jynneos or any medicines. Tell your health care provider if you have ever had any reactions to a previous dose of Jynneos or to any other vaccines, including a smallpox vaccine.
• About any medical conditions you have or have had, including severe or life-threatening allergies or a weakened immune system.
• About any health conditions that may prevent you from receiving medicine by injection.
• If you are pregnant or plan to become pregnant. Talk to your health care provider about the risks and benefits of receiving Jynneos during pregnancy.
• If you are breast/chestfeeding or plan to breast/chestfeed. For people with HIV in the United States, the Guideline recommends speaking with your health care provider to discuss options for feeding your baby. People with suppressed viral load have a less than 1% chance of transmitting HIV to their baby via their own milk. Although most medicines are safe to use while breast/chestfeeding, some medicines should be avoided. Always let your health care provider know about all the medicines and supplements you are taking before you start breast/chestfeeding.
• About other prescription and nonprescription medicines, vitamins, nutritional supplements, and herbal products you are taking or plan to take. Jynneos may affect the way other medicines or products work, and other medicines or products may affect how Jynneos works. Ask your health care provider if there are interactions between Jynneos and the medicines you take.

Ask your health care provider about possible side effects from getting a Jynneos vaccine. Your health care provider will tell you what to do if you have side effects.

How is Jynneos given? How is Jynneos given?

How is Jynneos given?

A health care provider gives the Jynneos vaccine. Vaccination with Jynneos is usually given as a series of two injections, with a 4-week interval between each dose. Read any printed information that your health care provider gives you about the Jynneos vaccine.

Where can I find more information about Jynneos vaccine? Where can I find more information about Jynneos vaccine?

Where can I find more information about Jynneos vaccine?

• Recommendations on the use of Jynneos vaccine in people with HIV, from the Guidelines for the Prevention and Treatment of Opportunistic Infections in Adults and Adolescents with HIV and/or the Guidelines for the Prevention and Treatment of Opportunistic Infections in Children with and Exposed to HIV.
• CDC webpages:
  • Clinical Considerations for Treatment and Prophylaxis of Mpox Infection in People Who are Immunocompromised.
  • Mpox Vaccine Recommendations
• This Patient Version drug summary is based on the following FDA label(s): Injection (suspension). The Patient Counseling Information section of the label includes information for people receiving Jynneos.
• Smallpox/Monkeypox (Jynneos) Vaccine Information Statement (VIS) available from the CDC.
• The American Hospital Formulary Service (AHFS) Patient Medication Information for smallpox/mpox vaccine available from MedlinePlus.
• Jynneos-related research studies, from ClinicalTrials.gov. (The ClinicalTrials.gov search can be modified so that you can get results that better match your interests.)