New Delhi: As the UK begins vaccinating people with Pfizer’s Coronavirus vaccine, a massive concern has arisen which has questioned the safety of the vaccine shots. According to US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulators, four volunteers who were given the vaccine shots during the trial stage have developed Bell’s Palsy. Notably, Bell’s palsy is a medical condition that causes one half of the face to droop.
The drug regulator has maintained that it was not clear what led to Bell’s Palsy in the aforesaid volunteers. Reports have it that regulators have asked doctors to constantly monitor side-effects of the vaccine.
Earlier, Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla had cast doubts if the vaccine will help stop the transmission of the infection. During an interview with NBC’s Lestor Holt, the company’s CEO was asked if a vaccinated individual can still transmit the virus on to others. To which, he had replied, “I think this is something that needs to be examined. We are not certain about that right now with what we know.”
A report on the subject also pointed out that researchers (ones not associated with the vaccine’s development) have raised a concern that the company has not assessed in its trials how the vaccine plays a role in the transmission of the disease.
The UK had earlier become the first country to approve the Pfizer/BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine, with the UK regulator Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) granting a temporary authorisation for its emergency use.
Yesterday, Britain’s medicines regulator issued a warning for people with “significant” history of allergic reactions to medicines, food or vaccines to not have the Pfizer/BioNTech jab, just a day after the first set of patients were administered their first of two doses of the vaccine against COVID-19. The warning came after two National Health Service (NHS) workers experienced “anaphylactoid reaction” symptoms shortly after being injected, but are now said to be recovering well.
