Life-threatening allergic reactions to COVID-19 vaccination, called anaphylaxis, do occur but are “extremely rare,” Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) officials said in a call Wednesday.
The CDC has documented 21 confirmed cases of severe allergic reactions to COVID-19 vaccinations, which averaged 11.1 severe reactions per 1 million doses, according to Dr. Nancy Messonnier, director of the CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory System. Illnesses.
Of the 20 patients with available data, all have recovered, the CDC noted.
The figures were published in a new CDC report released on Wednesday and are based on initial 1.9 million doses administered in the US. While the agency has since documented 29 total cases, it intends to describe the cases in a forthcoming report.
Most people who developed symptoms did so within 15 minutes of vaccination and 17 patients had a documented history of allergies or allergic reactions, including medical products, food, and insect stings.
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In comparison, the anaphylaxis for influenza vaccine is 1.3 cases per 1 million doses administered. While Messonnier noted that the percentage of severe allergic reactions is ten times higher for COVID-19 vaccinations, she assured that the cases are still ‘extremely rare’.
Most importantly, the CDC says that anyone who has an immediate or allergic reaction to the first dose of Pfizer or Moderna’s vaccine should not receive the second dose. Those with a known allergy to vaccine components, or closely related components in the vaccine, are also not advised to receive the vaccine at this time.
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In addition, the CDC recommends that someone with a history of an immediate allergic reaction to a vaccine, or a history of anaphylaxis due to any cause, be observed 30 minutes after vaccination. Most individuals are observed 15 minutes after vaccination.
As the Pfizer and BioNTech jab saw emergency approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration before the one created by Moderna, most of the CDC’s documented cases of severe allergic reactions occurred in recipients of Pfizer’s vaccine, Messonnier said. said.
That said, the federal health agency’s recommendations apply to the vaccines of both drugs.
‘At this stage we really do not have enough data to say that there is a difference in the risk [between Pfizer and Moderna vaccines]’and therefore our recommendations apply to both vaccines,’ she said.
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CDC officials have repeatedly stressed that the known and potential benefits of COVID-19 vaccination outweigh the risk of serious consequences due to COVID-19 disease.
“However, that does not mean that we would not be able to see potentially serious health events in the future,” Messonnier said.
“There are currently huge efforts underway to try to understand what could be the cause of this severe allergic reaction with both vaccines. I do not think we have anything definitive to say, there are many hypotheses about it, but on this stage, our recommendations for this apply to both vaccines, ”she added.
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The information on cases of anaphylaxis did not have a significant effect on the distribution plans, and as the CDC has previously said, all vaccination sites should be properly equipped and trained if anyone experiences anaphylaxis after vaccination.
Messonnier, who in the forthcoming remarks of other top federal officials, expressed hope for the speedy vaccination rate in the coming weeks amid resounding criticism of a slow nationwide vaccination effort.