Pfizer, Moderna Covid-19 vaccines linked to rare heart inflammation risk, FDA says

The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced that the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna Covid-19 vaccines indicate a rare risk of heart inflammation.

The patient and provider fact sheets of both vaccines were revised to include the warning from the FDA regarding myocarditis and pericarditis after the second dose and with the onset of symptoms within a few days after receiving the shot, reported CNBC on Saturday (Jun 26).

Myocarditis refers to the inflammation of the heart muscle, while pericarditis is the inflammation of the tissue surrounding the heart.

However, health officials said that the benefits of receiving a Covid-19 vaccine still outweigh the risks.

“The risk of myocarditis and pericarditis appears to be very low given the number of vaccine doses that have been administered,” said acting FDA commissioner Janet Woodcock.

“The benefits of Covid-19 vaccination continue to outweigh the risks, given the risk of Covid-19 diseases and related, potentially severe, complications,” she said.

It has been reported that there have been more than 1,200 cases of the two conditions, appearing mostly in people aged 30 and below who got vaccinated.

The FDA update came after a review and discussion were conducted by the Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices.

In a media release on Jun 11, the Ministry of Health (MOH) announced that the risk of heart inflammation after receiving the second dose of an mRNA Covid-19 vaccine remains “very small.”

The expert committee on Covid-19 vaccination in Singapore has found that myocarditis and pericarditis occur more often in men compared to women.

Patients have shown symptoms such as chest pain, shortness of breath, or abnormal heartbeats, said MOH.

The Health Sciences Authority has reported four such cases involving young men aged between 18 and 30 years.

All of the men have recovered or been discharged well from the hospital.

“Our assessment is that the benefits of receiving the mRNA Covid-19 vaccines, i.e., reduction in Covid-19 infections and severe complications even if infected, continue to outweigh the risks of vaccination,” said MOH. /TISG

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Risk of heart inflammation after second dose of mRNA Covid-19 vaccine “very small”: S’pore expert committee