Scientists are investigating the potential cause of allergic reactions to the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine.
The United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recorded six serious allergic reactions (all successfully treated) out of the 272,001 doses administered until December 19, and the polyethylene glycol compound, known as PEG, became the prime suspect in the cases. , Wall Street Newspaper reports. Although still speculative on this point – allergies to PEG are rare and the reactions may have been the other thing, according to the diary – PEG is found in other medicines, cosmetics and foods and is known to trigger anaphylaxis on rare occasions, although not all forms of the compound are “equal” in terms of allergic potential.
Part of the challenge of naming PEG as the likely catalyst for reactions is that the compound in vaccines “is different from what was previously associated with allergic reactions,” James Baker, an immunologist who runs the Michigan Nanotechnology Institute for Medicine and the Biological Sciences at Michigan University, told the diary.
PEG is also found in the Modern vaccine. A healthcare professional became the first person known to have an allergic reaction to this injection on Thursday. Dr. Hossein Sadrzadeh, who said he had a history of allergies, reported tingling sensations, an increase in heart rate and low blood pressure shortly after his inoculation. The symptoms were similar to a reaction he had previously with mollusks, he said. He was discharged a few hours later.
Incidents, while worrying, are rare – more than 1 million Americans have been vaccinated – and scientists and public health officials say vaccines are safe, effective and crucial to ending the pandemic. Read more at Wall Street Newspaper and CNN.
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