US FDA, CDC say Merck's Gardasil shot remains safe

WASHINGTON, July 22 (Reuters) - A review of health problems reported after women and girls received Merck & Co's (MRK.N) Gardasil vaccine shows it remains safe and effective for protecting against a virus that causes cervical cancer, U.S. officials said on Tuesday.

A statement from the Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said a review found 94 percent of problems reported after Gardasil vaccination were non-serious events.

Twenty deaths were reported as of June 30. "There was not a common pattern to the deaths that would suggest they were caused by the vaccine," the FDA and CDC said in a statement. (Reporting by Lisa Richwine; editing by Tim Dobbyn)