4114 Suspected Adverse Reaction Reports Following Vaccination Over Two Days

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyungsoo Park] As the number of COVID-19 vaccine recipients increases, reports of adverse reactions are also on the rise.

According to the COVID-19 Vaccination Response Promotion Team (Promotion Team) on the 20th, a total of 4,114 new cases suspected of adverse reactions after vaccination were reported to health authorities over the two days from the 18th to the 19th.

The quarantine authorities plan to verify the correlation with vaccination through expert evaluation for suspected cases of death or severe adverse reactions.

The number of adverse reaction reports by vaccine type is 2,584 for Pfizer, 1,266 for Moderna, 230 for AstraZeneca (AZ), and 34 for Janssen.

The number of suspected reports of 'anaphylaxis,' a severe systemic allergic reaction, increased by 15 cases. Among these, 8 cases were Pfizer recipients and 7 cases were Moderna recipients.

Major adverse reaction cases, including 'special interest' adverse reactions, intensive care unit admissions, life-threatening conditions, permanent disabilities, and sequelae, totaled 52 cases. Of these, 33 were Pfizer, 10 AstraZeneca, and 9 Moderna.

The remaining reports were cases of common post-vaccination symptoms such as redness, pain, swelling at the injection site, muscle pain, and headache.

Reports suspected of adverse reactions related to 'heterologous vaccination,' where the first dose was AstraZeneca and the second dose was Pfizer, increased by 31 cases, bringing the cumulative total to 6,057. Among these 31 cases, there were no deaths or suspected anaphylaxis cases, but there were 3 major adverse reaction cases.

Since the start of vaccination in Korea on February 26, the cumulative number of suspected adverse reaction reports is 244,038 cases. This accounts for about 0.43% of the cumulative 57,259,535 vaccinations as of midnight on the day.

So far, the adverse reaction reporting rates relative to the number of vaccinations by vaccine type are 0.58% for Janssen, 0.52% for Moderna, 0.51% for AstraZeneca, and 0.35% for Pfizer.

The authorities classify adverse reaction cases based on the initial symptoms reported at the time of notification. The cumulative number of death reports as of midnight is 652. By vaccine type, there are 341 for Pfizer, 285 for AstraZeneca, 15 for Moderna, and 11 for Janssen.

Including 276 people who were initially reported with other symptoms but whose condition worsened to severe and resulted in death, the total number of deaths is 928. By vaccine type, there are 493 for Pfizer, 402 for AstraZeneca, 20 for Moderna, and 13 for Janssen.

The total number of major suspected adverse reaction cases is 8,188. Among the total 244,038 adverse reaction reports, 234,079 cases, accounting for 95.9%, were classified as general cases with relatively mild symptoms such as muscle pain, headache, fever, and nausea after vaccination.

The Promotion Team also released analysis results of suspected cases up to midnight on the 19th since the start of COVID-19 vaccination. Among the total 57,185,164 vaccinations, there were 242,656 adverse reactions, and 27,164 new reports were received during the week from the 13th to the 19th.

The Promotion Team explained, "The adverse reaction reporting rate after vaccination is maintained at a low level compared to the early stages of vaccination, with 0.48% for the first dose and 0.32% for the second dose as of midnight on the 19th."

They added, "If symptoms suspected of myocarditis or pericarditis appear after Pfizer or Moderna vaccination, prompt medical consultation is necessary."

Symptoms suspected of myocarditis or pericarditis include ▲ chest pain, pressure, or discomfort ▲ difficulty breathing, shortness of breath, or pain when breathing ▲ rapid or irregular heartbeat ▲ fainting, etc.

The Promotion Team urged, "Medical institutions treating patients suspected of adverse reactions should thoroughly conduct prompt diagnosis and treatment for myocarditis, pericarditis, thrombocytopenic thrombosis, Guillain-Barr? syndrome, and report adverse reactions after vaccination."