Of nearly 2 million people who were vaccinated against COVID-19 over a 10-day period in December, only 21 people experienced severe allergic reactions, officials at the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said.
Most of these people had a history of allergies or allergic reactions and, of the 20 people with whom the CDC followed, all recovered and were sent home.
Nancy Messonnier, director of the CDC’s National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, emphasized that allergic reactions are an “extremely rare” occurrence.
“Of course, we would all expect any vaccine to have zero adverse events, but even with 11 cases per million doses administered, it is a very safe vaccine,” she said.
The risks of falling seriously ill with COVID-19 are much greater, said Messonnier, with more than 2,000 people dying each day.
“The risk of COVID and bad results from COVID is still greater than the risk of a serious vaccine result,” she said.
A report published on Wednesday by the CDC found 21 allergic reactions among 1.9 million people who were vaccinated with the Pfizer vaccine between 14 and 23 December.
Another eight reports of severe allergic reactions were reported after that time 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 this period, but due to its similarity to the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine, the CDC recommends that patients with a history of immediate and severe allergic reactions to vaccines or anaphylaxis be monitored for 30 minutes after injections.
People with a history of allergic reactions to food, insect bites, vaccines or a history of anaphylaxis should consult their doctors before being vaccinated, Messonnier said.