Myocarditis, other rare COVID-19 vaccine risks confirmed by study – PennLive

People who received the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines for COVID-19 were more likely to come down with myocarditis or pericarditis, which are heart-related inflammations, according to a study involving 99 million people who received vaccine.

For example, people were 6.1 times more likely to come down with myocarditis following their second dose of Moderna vaccine. Higher than expected rates of myocarditis also occurred among people who received the Pfizer vaccine, according to the study which can be read in full in the journal Vaccine.

The study, which also looked at side effects among people who received the AstraZeneca vaccine, further found elevated risks of side effects including Guillain-Barre syndrome, a disease of the immune system, and blood clots in the brain.

Dr. Marc Siegel of NYU Langone Medical Center told Fox News, This study does not really change anything; it just provides much further evidence of what we already know.

Siegel and other experts further said the risks of those conditions and others including death are still far higher following an actual COVID-19 infection. Seigel, who is a regular Fox News contributor, called the side effects rare and said other studies show that the vaccine decreases the risk of myocarditis from COVID itself dramatically.

Forbes quoted biotech CEO Jacob Glanville as saying, The odds of all of these adverse events is still much, much higher when infected with SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19), so getting vaccinated is still by far the safer choice.

The study, which was funded in part by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, looked at people in eight countries including Canada, but not the United States.

Previous studies have found the same side effects, and experts have noted that nearly everyone who experiences conditions such as myocarditis recovers quickly.

The new study, done by the Global Vaccine Network, which is part of the World Health Organization, focused on side effects that showed up within about two months of a vaccine dose. It contained no information regarding severity of illness, recovery time or deaths.

Doctors and the U.S. government have long cited a slight risk of myocarditis following COVID-19 vaccination, with the risk highest among young men.

One study involved members of the U.S. military who received a total of 2.8 million doses. Twenty-three men came down with myocarditis, with most coming after their second dose. In most cases symptoms went away within a week; none died.

All told, 13.53 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccine have been given around the world, with about 70% of people having received at least one. That includes 677 doses million in the United States as of May 2023, and 28 million in Pennsylvania.

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Myocarditis, other rare COVID-19 vaccine risks confirmed by study - PennLive