No safety concerns were associated with coronavirus vaccines Pfizer and BioNTech or Moderna during the first month of distribution, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported on Friday. No deaths have been attributed to vaccines, the health agency noted.
The report, which included data from the first vaccines administered on December 11 to January 13, 2021, found that the most common symptoms associated with pricking are headache, fatigue and dizziness. Although 113 deaths were reported to the Vaccine Adverse Event Notification System, none of the data suggested a relationship with the COVID-19 vaccine.
The agency noted “rare cases” of anaphylaxis among recipients of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccine, but that was not out of the range of those seen with other vaccines.
“The occurrence of anaphylaxis after receiving the COVID-19 vaccines during the analytical period, 4.5 cases per million doses administered, is within the range reported after receiving the inactivated influenza vaccine (1.4 per million), vaccine pneumococcal polysaccharide (2.5 per million), and live attenuated vaccine against herpes zoster (9.6 per million); there are effective treatments for anaphylaxis (6), “the report said.
The agency also said that adverse reactions to the Pfizer vaccine were reported more frequently after receiving the second dose than the first, but that information on the second dose of Moderna was not yet available due to the intervals between doses.
“The initial post-recovery safety profiles of the two COVID-19 vaccines in current use do not indicate evidence of unexpected serious adverse events,” said the report. “These data provide guarantees and useful information about what healthcare professionals and vaccine recipients can expect after vaccination.”
In approximately 30 days of monitoring, more than 13.7 million doses were administered. Across the United States, the launch got off to a rough start, with confusion over scheduling, supply restrictions and concerns over missed doses.
CLICK HERE FOR FULL CORONAVIRUS COVERAGE
Supply remains a concern among states, with the United States currently averaging 1.7 million doses administered daily, but people continue to see long waiting times or canceled appointments. On Friday, the White House noted that winter storms affected the delivery of supplies to each of the 50 states and that about 6 million doses were being withheld. Andy Slavitt, a consultant to the White House’s COVID-19, said he expects the supply delay to be updated in the coming days.