- The Moderna
clinical tests found that pain, fatigue, headache and pain at the injection site were commonly reported after vaccination. - Since millions of people received the vaccine outside of testing, the main side effects include pain at the injection site, chills, headache and fever.
- In general, older adults are less likely to experience side effects after vaccination.
More than 47 million doses of the Modern vaccine have been administered to adults in the United States since the FDA issued
The Moderna
Now, with so many shots going to the guns, we were able to get an even clearer view of the side effects that the Modern vaccine causes.
Like those involved in clinical trials, people commonly report pain at the injection site, along with chills, headache and fever.
There have also been several reports of a “COVID arm” after the Modern vaccination, a harmless skin rash likely triggered by the ingredients of the vaccine.
The reactions are usually more intense after the second dose and in people who have previously developed COVID-19.
Doctors responsible for infectious diseases say these reactions are to be expected, as they indicate that the immune system is doing its job to learn to recognize and fight the coronavirus.
Injection site pain, chills, headache and fever are the
All of these reactions – which are temporary and non-threatening – indicate that the vaccine is doing its job. They usually disappear in a few days.
“Because the vaccine works to ‘train’ your immune system to start developing antibodies, pain is a sign of the inflammation that occurs as part of that process,” said Dr. Shobha Swaminathan, associate professor of medicine at Rutgers New Jersey Medical Leader from the clinical and school research center of the Rutgers Moderna study.
Like other vaccines, each person’s response may be slightly different.
In general, older adults are less likely to experience side effects after vaccination.
It is not clear exactly why the side effects may differ between the sexes. Some health experts suspect that women are more likely to report side effects, while others believe that there is a biological component.
Several people also reported rashes on the arm where they received the injection – also known as the COVID arm.
“This is a very common side effect and probably has to do with the ingredients in the vaccine that are intended to teach the immune system that something dangerous is being introduced,” explained Dr. Anne Liu, an infectious disease doctor at Stanford Health Care.
Anaphylaxis, a severe allergic reaction, appears to be rare. Anaphylaxis also appears to be
The Modern injection is a messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccine that teaches our cells to make a piece of the SARS-CoV-2 protein and mount an immune response against it.
That way, if a person were exposed to the coronavirus, his body would already know how to fight it and prevent serious diseases.
The first dose is considered “the first” and trains your body to recognize the virus, according to Swaminathan.
“As this is the first exposure, the reactions tend to be mild,” said Swaminathan.
The second dose, the “booster”, further strengthens the immune response.
“Since patients have already ‘seen’ the vaccine from the first injection, the second booster is an exaggerated response to it,” said Swaminathan.
The research also suggests that the reactions are more intense in people who already had COVID-19, since they are likely to have some level of pre-existing immunity.
Reactions to the Modern vaccine are similar to those reported after the Pfizer vaccine, which is also an mRNA vaccine.
Recipients of the mRNA Moderna and Pfizer vaccines commonly reported pain at the injection site and redness after the first dose, along with fatigue and joint pain after the second dose.
“Reactions to mRNA vaccines have not been terribly different, certainly not to the degree that an individual should choose one or the other based on side effects,” said Liu.
In clinical trials, the Johnson & Johnson injection was associated with milder side effects compared to mRNA injections.
“As Moderna and Pfizer require two injections and most of the side effects are from the second injection, the J&J vaccine may have slightly less side effects,” said Swaminathan.
With more than 47 million doses of the Modern vaccine administered to Americans, we are getting a clearer picture of the types of side effects that can occur after vaccination.
Most commonly, people experience pain at the injection site and redness after the first dose, along with fatigue and joint pain after the second dose.
The reactions tend to be more intense after the second dose and in people who have already had COVID-19.
The reactions are expected and indicate that the vaccine is doing its job, teaching the immune system to recognize and fight the coronavirus.