- Boston doctor Dr. Hossein Sadrzadeh said on Thursday that he had a severe allergic reaction when receiving the COVID-19 injection from Moderna.
- He told the New York Times that he felt dizzy and that his heart raced shortly after receiving the injection. He was taken to the emergency room and then discharged, doing well.
- It is believed to be the first documented case of a severe allergy associated with Moderna’s vaccine, which was recently authorized by US regulators.
- Some allergic reactions have been reported to the injection of Pfizer and BioNTech, the only other vaccine authorized for emergency use in the United States.
- Moderna said it would investigate the matter.
- Visit the Business Insider home page for more stories.
A Boston doctor said on Thursday that he had a severe allergic reaction when receiving Moderna’s COVID-19 injection, which was recently authorized for emergency use in the United States.
Dr. Hossein Sadrzadeh, a geriatric oncologist at Boston Medical Center, told the New York Times that he felt dizzy and his heart started to race almost immediately after receiving the injection.
A Boston Medical Center spokesman told the Times that Dr. Sadrzadeh was “authorized to self-administer his personal EpiPen” – an adrenaline autoinjector used in allergy emergencies – and then taken to the emergency room, where he was evaluated and treated, observed and dispensed with. “He’s fine today,” said the spokesman.
Dr. Sadrzadeh has a strong allergy to shellfish, which is why he carries an EpiPen.
It is believed to be the first documented case of a severe allergy linked to Moderna’s vaccine, which the FDA (Food and Drug Administration) gave an emergency use authorization on December 19. The vaccine began to be launched on Monday.
Some people have had allergic reactions to the injection from Pfizer and BioNTech, which is the only other COVID-19 vaccine authorized for use in the United States. Regulators in the UK, where the injection was also approved, said in early December that anyone with a history of “significant” food or drug allergies should avoid the current Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine after two people had reactions.
Reactions to Pfizer injection appear to be non-fatal, and the data suggest that the vaccine is safe for the vast majority of people with allergies.
Moderna spokesman Ray Jordan told the Times on Thursday that the company could not comment. On Friday, he said Moderna’s medical security team would look into the matter.
The FDA declined to comment to the Times.
Spokesperson for the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Tom Skinner, said the agency would publish new information on reactions to vaccines starting next week.
Read More: Meet the 35 health startups that VCs say will take off in 2021
Moderna’s vaccine, which was designed in just two days, began to reach Americans earlier this week. Dr. Anthony Fauci, the country’s leading infectious disease specialist, was among those who received their first injection of the two-dose vaccine.
Pfizer and Moderna vaccines are very similar in terms of safety and efficacy. There may be slight differences in how they work in older people, but experts say more data is needed.
Since the Pfizer vaccine needs to be stored at extremely low temperatures, it will be distributed in larger institutions, while the Moderna vaccine may more likely reach smaller clinics and pharmacies.