STATE ISLAND, NY – Side effects such as fever, headache, fatigue and nausea are all signs that the coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine is working – which triggers an immune response in our body to prevent future exposure to the virus, the Centers for Disease, to move. Control and Prevention (CDC) tells us.
But as many as 50% of those who receive the Moderna or Pfizer vaccine experience no side effects, or very few, medical experts report.
Should they be worried that the vaccine will not work?
Doctors Azza Elemam, a treating physician at Richmond University Medical Center (RUMC), said ten years of experience in treating infectious diseases. And the answer is a resounding ‘no’.
“The most important way we know is that less than half of the participants in the trials had reactions, but that all were still 98% immune,” Elemam said. “We know that everyone who was vaccinated in the trials, regardless of whether they had a fever or malaise, was still immune.”
According to her, vaccine trials have expanded, emphasizing that “tens of thousands of people have been studied.” And the speed of vaccine development has more to do with finances than the rushed or endangered science.
“The government has put a lot of money into speeding up the development of this vaccine,” she said. The funding wiped out the risk for pharmaceutical companies, which otherwise would not have invested in research at a slower pace. “It therefore allows medicine companies to detect the vaccine.”
And the different reactions people are experiencing to the COVID-19 vaccine are nothing new, she said, pointing to the flu vaccine and others that have been used successfully for decades.
“It’s definitely a known phenomenon with vaccines,” Elemam said. ‘If you remember when your children were vaccinated, some children have a fever and are very picky, while others are their usual selves the next day. People’s reactions vary. We do not know why, but it is not surprising. ”
Elemam said she herself only felt slight soreness at the injection site when she was vaccinated.
She urged Staten Islanders not to allow the vaccine’s possible side effects to deter them from being vaccinated when available.
“I think a lot has been made about people having serious reactions, but compared to what?” She asked. ‘You make a decision between the vaccine and the disease. We know COVID is not something you want. We have all experienced in our families or friends or relative losses associated with COVID. ”
Still, knowledge of the possible side effects is a valuable tool, she said.
“It’s just something to look out for, to know that it’s not unusual or unexpected if you react,” the doctor said. “You should try to treat the symptoms with Tylenol or ibuprofen and know that it will not last very long.”
Nutrition can also play a role in managing symptoms, a nutritionist told SIlive.com
If symptoms such as fever persist for more than a few days, or if someone is still feeling unwell, a doctor should be contacted, she said.
“It may appear that they have just been infected with COVID (before being vaccinated), or that they have a completely unrelated infection,” she said.
Elemam recalled treating a patient who was worried about post-vaccination symptoms but was experiencing it due to a urinary tract infection.
Usually, any side effects after vaccine are treatable and short-lived, she said.
“In most people who experience the reaction, it is still manageable with Tylenol or ibuprofen,” she said. ‘It’s not related to immunity. This is not a bad thing happening. ‘