Of nearly 2 million people vaccinated against COVID-19 during ten days in December, only 21 people experienced severe allergic reactions, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) officials said Wednesday.
Most of the people had a history of allergies or allergic reactions, and for the 20 people who followed up on the CDC, all recovered and were sent home.
Nancy Messonnier, director of the CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, emphasizes that allergic reactions are an “extremely rare” occurrence.
“Of course we would all hope that any vaccine would have no adverse events, but even at 11 cases per million doses administered, it is a very safe vaccine,” she said.
The risks of becoming seriously ill due to COVID-19 are much greater, Messonnier said, with more than 2,000 people dying each day.
“The risk of COVID and poor results of COVID still outweigh the risk of a serious vaccine outcome,” she said.
In a report published by the CDC on Wednesday, 21 allergic reactions were found among 1.9 million people who were vaccinated with the Pfizer vaccine between 14 and 23 December.
An additional eight reports of severe allergic reactions were reported after the period and were not included in the report. More reports will be released in the future.
The Pfizer vaccine was the only one administered to the public during the period, but due to the similarity with the Modern COVID-19 vaccine, the CDC recommends that patients with a history of immediate and severe allergic reactions be looked at. on vaccines or anaphylaxis. 30 minutes after injections.
People with a history of allergic reactions to food, insect stings, vaccinations or a history of anaphylaxis should consult their doctors before being vaccinated, Messonnier said.